Bumps
by Squishy Penguin
Summary: Bankotsu dislikes Kagome. Kagome dislikes Bankotsu. Naraku hates them both, but it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, not when he has them both captured and blackmailed into doing his bidding. -BanKag-
1. It Begins

Title: Bumps

Author: Squishy Penguin

Rating: PG-13 just to be safe

Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome

_Disclaimer: It's sad but true: I don't own Inu Yasha. :sigh: If I did, Bankotsu wouldn't die in the series (well, technically, he had to die once to get into the story, but who wants to go technical? ;;) I guess some dreams just don't come true, eh? _

_---_

He never meant to love her. Hell, he never meant to even _like_ her. She was the mutt's woman, one who occasionally got in the way of battle with a chance arrow. Sure she had her uses, with seeing the jewel shards and all. But how intelligent could one be when to fall in love with an ignorant half-breed like Inuyasha?

The mutt didn't know it of course. How could he? With his eyes always trained on the—

what did Jak call it? 'Walking Clay Pot?' Whatever it was, it didn't matter to him.

Yet, he couldn't deny not having a bit of sympathy for the modern day miko's plight. After all, he _was_ human once.

No matter, the girl chose to follow Inuyasha and therefore signed her own death warrant. Naraku ordered he and his brothers to kill all who threatened him in return for their revival with shikon shards.

To even spare her a thought was surprising enough.

And be given a second chance at life! Now **that** was an offer close to none receive. Taking his newly revived life back from Naraku was top on his priority list, _no doubt about it._

Wiping out the hanyou and his friends seemed the way to do it, not that he had many choices with Naraku as your boss. Like the mutt, Naraku had this theory: you either go with his way of thinking or keel over and die. What options to choose from, eh?

His brothers were counting on him as well: to lead them through this as he had done in the past.

He couldn't let them down again, not with what had happened last time. Dying with such guilt, it had only intensified when he saw what they had all become. Hell, they were all **freakin'** zombies now because of his error!

As their leader, he had to make it up somehow. He wouldn't allow himself to mislead them, not _again._

Killing your 'family' for a second time was not something one would want following them around for the rest of their undead life.

It all seemed so simple: just kill Inuyasha and his friends.

His Banryuu _was_ used to the sweet, metallic taste of blood.

Killing seemed so natural; so easy. People couldn't seem to understand how they could take so many lives and appear to live without a conscience for their deeds. These people failed to see that one could be hardened, with emotion no longer coming into play. Soon, the killing had almost become as a sport would to he and his brothers.

It was so incredibility easy to spill another's lifeblood, so _pathetically_ easy.

Accepting Naraku's terms seemed to be a guarantied way out of hell.

…However, nothing ever goes according to plan. Wouldn't life be so simple if it did?

For it to be Kagome, _Inuyasha's_ wench, to turn out to be his unexpected bump in life was not only laughable, but outrageous!

He wouldn't have believed it even if told in advance.

Who would?

For he, Bankotsu, leader of the Shichinintai, to have feelings for a girl!

It's not just lust we're talking about here, but real, stick you in the eye **_feelings_** for another human being other than himself and his brothers was just too hard for him to even imagine.

Kagome, the girl he who he had tried to dismiss as a weak wench, an easy target, was the one he himself just couldn't let go of.

Don't you just love it when you know that someone up there just **had **to be laughing at you?

---

A/N: How's that for a first attempt at not only a Ban/Kag paring, but also an Inu Yasha fic in general? Oh yeah, who's cool now? ;;

Out of curiosity, what sounds better/correct shipper name for Ban/Kag: Bangome or Kagkotsu? Never quite sure on the matter.

Happy early Thanksgiving to all!


	2. Fateful Duel

Title: Bumps

Author: Squishy Penguin

Rating: PG-13 (Just playin' it safe)

Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome

Summary: She always appeared to be nothing more than a weak target, Inuyasha's wench. And yet, the more he tried to dismiss her from his mind, the more he found he couldn't. And for the leader of the Shichinintai, that's never a good thing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

---

To think upon their first meeting was one he could almost get down to the last detail.

He took pride in his skill to pick out beautiful women. And Kagome Higurashi _was _an undeniably beautiful woman.

Not that he would admit it.

---

It had been a blood bath, pure and simple. Nothing fatal, but all those little nicks and cuts had a way of adding up.

Sweat dribbling down well-toned bodies, the harsh sun continued to beat down relentlessly on the two dueling gladiators.

Illuminated figures danced on the barren land. Little puffs of dust rose and fell as the players twirled in their introit play. Coordinated, graceful, and deadly. A misstep could mean certain death to those who gambled in this game of life. To err is to be human, and to a human, death is all too certain. One faulty gamble is all that is needed to have a visit to Kami with an express pass.

Swords came together with precise precision; clanging metal wound upon metal, interlocked together by trembling, weary hands. The battle had been a long one, more grueling than either were used to against one another.

It was this point in the battle where the better swordsman shined through, for the lesser one will begin to make errors.

Inuyasha spun around just in time to block Bankotsu's oncoming swing. Distracted by Kagome's yelp from her attempt to avoid Renkotsu's attack, he had almost allowed himself to be speared through the stomach like a fish. Cursing, he jumped a few feet back from the charging Bankotsu. Now was _not_ the time to slip up.

Amber clashed with smug blue as they circled one another, searching for weaknesses in the other's defense. Inuyasha glared defiantly into the face of the cockily smirking assassin. The arrogant bastard, (he was sure), was one the world could definitely do without.

And with that Bankotsu-free world would come one extremely pleased hanyou.

Sparks flew from the raging swords, both their masters refusing to give in to the sweet release that the fainting from blood loss could provide.

Elegant moves falling now too choppy, less smooth. Style was long forgotten; survival had long taken over.

Inuyasha zigzagged across the battlefield in a failed attempt to confuse his opponent and gain the advantage. Bankotsu, keeping up stride for stride with the hanyou, launched a series of fast swings aimed at his enemy's head. Inuyasha blocked these continued attacks with an effort, gritting his teeth all the while.

Bankotsu, noting Inuyasha's labored defenses, rained more attacks down upon the hanyou. Blue eyes lit with a victorious light as Inuyasha was driven, knees bent, to the ground. Pouring all his taxed energy into one last powerful blow, his Banryuu swept the mighty Tetsusaiga from Inuyasha's faltering hand.

Hunched on the ground, with ears flattened and eyes lowered, Inuyasha looked like the true picture of humiliated defeat. Sapphire flames danced with victory over this powerful enemy and Banryuu was readied for the final, victorious blow.

With his sword steadied above his braided locks, Bankotsu glared down at the hanyou for the last time. With a triumph smile full of pride, he swung his weapon down upon opponent…

…and then, Bankotsu couldn't say that he wasn't exactly surprised that things never seemed to go his way lately. Take Jak drinking the last stores of his beloved sake for example. But with Inuyasha's claws tearing a hole through his side, his sake didn't seem as important at the moment as it had back then.

Banryuu slipped out of callused fingers as the mercenary's body dropped to the beaten ground.

Tides had turned.

With his blood painting the ground in red hues, he was forced to have the hanyou's smug face staring down at him as one of his last sights in life. Kami must really hate him.

He felt Inuyasha's friends gather around his fallen body, and his fingers itched to slice them with his Banryuu. Unfortunately, with a sword tip currently pointing at his throat, it really wasn't an option now. He settled for glaring defiantly at all who dare stare at his humiliation.

'_Where the hell are Jak and the others? It would be impossible for them not to realize by now that something went wrong. Where **are** they?"_

Noticing the hanyou's lack of action towards him, his thoughts of his brothers were forgotten. He couldn't worry about them right now, not with that damn sword pointed at his throat and generous amounts of blood seeping from his side.

"What are you waiting for Inuyasha? For _me_ to beg for my life? Well, _I_ won't be the one who will bestow you with that kind of pleasure, stupid half-breed."

Inuyasha smirked, if possible, wider.

"Eh, Bankotsu, who's the better swordsman now? Where's that smug look on your face from earlier?" He prodded his sword tip into Bankotsu's neck, causing a thin stream of blood to come forth.

Wincing, his hands clutched the dirt beneath them with a powerful hold and refused to speak.

The monk, Bankotsu noticed, shifted uneasily and muttered to his friend, "Inuyasha, stop toying with him. Just kill him and get it over with, we are not tortur-"

"**Shut up**, Miroku, and let me finish with him. He's an assassin, remember? He would have been bestowing the same kind of treatment on _us_ if our positions were swapped. Did you not think of that? Don't be a kind-hearted fool," spat the irritated half-breed.

In the silence of the barren land, a northern wind picked up, ruffling the hair of those caught in its fierce gale. Inuyasha froze as the wind blew past him, keen nose twitching and ears perked. His eyes scanned the area, as if searching for someone only he would find.

Glancing down at Bankotsu and back towards the direction of the wind, the white haired boy looked uncertain.

A soft gasp reached the mercenary's keen ears; coming from the one they called Kagome. Her eyes held the flash of recognition, followed then by intense hurt. Her friends, the monk and demon slayer, looked over towards her in sympathy. The hanyou didn't notice the girl at all.

This distraction was _exactly _what he needed.

Twisting his arm around, he grabbed the underside of the mighty Tetsusaiga and wretched it away from himself. Ignoring the pain pounding in his side from Inuyasha's claws, he threw himself from the group of four and towards his Banryuu. Snatching it from the dust, he whirled around to face them.

However, instead of the expected rage over Bankotsu's escape from Tetsusaiga, the hanyou settled for giving him a harsh amber glare. Looking back towards the direction of the wind, he made his decision.

"Let's go, I'm tired of toying with him. We'll finish this fight another day," Inuyasha stated flatly to the rest of the group.

Sango began to protest with but was cut off with a hurried "don't argue with me! I'll fight him when I want to fight him, so **let's go**." The hanyou, without waiting for the rest to catch up, started walking to the north. Following slowly, the rest of the group soon disappeared out of sight.

Lowering Banryuu, Bankotsu exhaled a tired sigh full of relief. Clutching his wound, he started towards the forest.

_'Damn mutt, how stupid could you get? Though I hate to admit it, what ever made him leave probably saved my hide. But yet why leave when he clearly had the upper hand? Even when I grabbed Banryuu…'_

Naturally, being deep in thought and all, it would take until he was almost nose to nose with the guy _before_ realizing that Naraku had been watching his fight the whole time.

…and the half-demon didn't look too happy.

_Crap._

_---_

A/N: Would have gotten it out earlier, but I was sick (still am) It totally killed my Thanksgiving by leaving me with no appetite. Oh well, I'm on the mends so I can't really complain.

It will probably be a week or so until chapter 3 appears, since I'm going to a concert tomorrow night and out again Tuesday for Christmas shopping, leaving Wednesday as the earliest day to begin typing chap 3

On a final note, thanks for all the lovely reviews! I never expected that many on my first try at an Inuyasha fic and I appreciated every single one of them! Much love to you all :)


	3. Horror Film

Title: Bumps – Chapter 3: _Horror Film_

Author: Squishy Penguin

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome

Summary: She always appeared to be nothing more than a weak target, Inuyasha's wench. And yet, the more he tried to dismiss her from his mind, the more he found he couldn't. And for the leader of the Shichinintai, that's never a good thing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

_---_

_And he claimed he couldn't dance! She would scoff at that, stating that everyone always knew how to dance, it was whether or not they'll allow themselves to do it was real the problem._

_He would then give her the familiar 'yeah, right. I'll just go with what you say not to piss you off' type look and then tactfully change the subject._

_But when they were alone, ah, that was when the true dancer, in all of his glory, would come alive! Emerging on moonlit nights, with the cherry blossom trees the sole viewer of this intimate act._

_Moving to one beat only they could hear; letting both their feet, and their souls, for once fly truly free._

_---_

Stretching her arms, she gave her head a weary shake. Traveling through Feudal Japan always gave one a workout.

Kagome looked ahead towards the silent Inuyasha padding along in front of her. She could place money on a bet that his usual sullen look currently adorned his face.

He turned his head a bit.

_Yep_, that look was one that never failed.

Sighing, she fell back to chat with Shippou and almost didn't notice that the hanyou had suddenly sped up ahead until his shouting could be heard by all within a hundred mile radius.

'_The Inuyasha list of never failing habits #2: A voice loud enough to wake the dead when enemy is spotted,'_ Kagome thought wryly to herself as she and the others hurried into battle as Inuyasha and the leader of the Shichinintai, Bankotsu, began to spar.

---

Dodging from a stream of flames headed her way, Kagome readied her arrow. Pulling back, she released the loaded bow to send her streaking attack towards the devious Renkotsu. Cursing, he fell back and paused a moment to reconsider his opponent.

Kagome smirked grimly. '_Haha, that's what happens when you underestimate the true power of a miko!' _The thought that the arrow had actually ended up missing by at least ten yards from the intended target she refused to let cross her mind and ruin her moment of gloating.

During her match with the fire-breather, both fighters had slowly inched their battle over towards the surrounding forest trees. Oozing in bleak mist, the forest looked as undesirable as ever. To have a battle brought there could mean a serious disadvantage to the modern miko, and she was determined to keep that from happening.

And Renkotsu knew it.

Smirking slyly, he continued to lead the girl through his carefully drawn out trap. Though he realized that she herself knew what a grievous error it would be to enter the forest, he baited and drew her closer and closer towards its murky depths. And she was falling for it: _hook, line, and sinker_.

With a sneakily thrown upper cut accompanied with a flaring display of flames, the girl Kagome was flung backwards into the very area she desired least to be.

With lips stretched taunt against hard teeth, he reveled in the girl's startled yelp as she disappeared into the fog.

Wasting no time, he bounded in after her.

---

Wrapped in the mist, Kagome slunk close to the ground. Tense fingers gripped her bow as she was forced to acknowledge the fact of having played straight into the enemy's hands and was now stuck without a clue on finding her way out.

'_Baka, baka, BAKA! Dammit, what a mess! Typically, the one thing I kept coaching myself to avoid at all costs is the very thing I end up doing…baKA!' _

Mentally slapping herself, she tore free from her musings just in time to have her heart rate tripled as the sound of Renkotsu's voice floated close by.

"Girl, come out, come out, wherever you arrreee…"

'_Ugh, that voice. It's like he's five or something…that or now I'm in some cheap horror film…'_

"Miko, you **know** that you don't stand a chance in this fog. And I promise I won't have _too_ much fun with the torturing when I find you…and I **_will_ **find you. That's a promise."

'_This guy needs to come up with some better lines, it sounds like he's reading some crappy dialogue out of a bad fanfic. How cliché. I may have missed a lot of school thanks to Inuyasha, but at least **I** can be more original than that.'_

"Girl, I just thought that you would like to know all of the different ways a body could be cooked. Well for one, there's always the simplistic style of roasting. Next, we have the slightly more intriguing way of barbeque. And we mustn't forget…"

Listening to the irksome voice drone on and on over the various ways of miko flambé, Kagome almost didn't catch the tiny yet distinct sound of a cracking branch nearby. But _almost_ doesn't count.

The forest suddenly became bleached from noise, and with it Kagome realized that she hadn't been the only one to hear that sound.

'_Well, if that's what it took to shut him up…' _the girl shook her head, grinning wryly to herself, and continued to remain silent and watch the events unfolding before her.

---

Renkotsu slid through the mist, eyes darting to and fro in an act to determine the cause of the noise. He may have given off the impression of being distracted, but one does not remain long as a mercenary without knowing to be constantly aware of his surroundings.

Another rustling grew from the side.

Renkotsu whirled around in a defensive stance to meet whatever was in store for him but instead was met with empty air.

More tremors sprang from behind now.

Spinning, he threw a heavy punch into the shrubs as a way to cease the noise.

_Nothing was there._

Sweating profusely, the fire-breather's panic showed clearly on his face as the noise surrounded him on all sides. Encircling him, the noise grew in volume and the movement in the brush soon became too quick to pinpoint down.

Kagome, safe in her hideout, could only look on in horror as the misty area filled with shadows, obscuring her vision.

Yet in the end, it didn't matter whether or not she could see. Icy tendrils of revulsion gripped her body as she tried to block out the antagonizing sounds of Renkotsu's screams. Rising in pitch, the assassin wore his voice down close to nothing as his cries became more frantic and were soon dripping with pure agony.

Her breathing became hitched, lungs gasping for air, as she stood sole witness to the crime taking place before her. Joints stiff with fright held her in place as her mind screamed at her body to move away from this horror show, _to do **something**_.

Slowly, ever so slowly, her creaking legs gradually started to response to her brain's frenzied messages to run. Brown pupils, dilated and stretched, stared unblinking as her body began to inch backwards with ears unable to block out the terrible sounds.

Renkotsu, pleading to his capturer for release from this torture, for second chances, was rewarded with only the escape of his most excruciating shrieks issued his lips yet.

Like magic, her joints unlocked as Kagome reeled back from the disturbing scene sounding before her.

Her mind chose then to flash her back to a line she had said as a joke from earlier:_ 'Ugh, that voice. It's like he's five or something…that or now I'm in some cheap horror film…'_

Her heart clenched in horror as she realized her own unintentional prediction of fate with that throwaway line.

'_..th...this is **worst** than any…any horror film I could ever…'_

She couldn't even finish her train of thoughts.

Bolting in a frenzied dash out of the forest to escape from this madness, the sudden _crack_ of crunching bones and squishing innards would be one that would haunt her nightmares for many long nights to come.

---

Meant to finish this chapter way sooner than expected, but I got caught up in a lot of things (holiday shopping for one, and Gaara from Naruto was another (GaaSaku!) )

Again, thanks for the lovely reviews and I wish you all a happy holiday and a good break from school! (I need that break so badly)


	4. That Feeling Called Guilt

Title: Bumps – Chapter 4  
Author: Squishy Penguin  
Rating: PG-13  
Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome  
Summary: She always appeared to be nothing more than a weak target, Inuyasha's wench. And yet, the more he tried to dismiss her from his mind, the more he found he couldn't. And for the leader of the Shichinintai, that's never a good thing.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

_**'Flashback'**_

_----------------------------------------------------_

_He loved to let her run her fingers through his hair. That little sigh of pleasure that never failed to come issued from her lips as she stroked the silky tresses was heaven to his ears. _

_And he loved it when she complained how unfair it was for the boy to have softer hair than the girl._

_And he loved it when she mumbled something about buying better strawberry shampoo._

_And he loved it when that little pout her mouth would make would appear even as she continued to play with his hair._

_It was always a fun pastime to try and cheer her up._

_---_

Bolting in a frenzied dash out of the forest to escape from this madness, the sudden _crack_ of crunching bones and squishing innards would be one that would haunt her nightmares for many long nights to come.

---

Drawing out from the darkness of the dense trees, Kagome emerged into the patchy sunlight.

'_What just…happened…in there?'_

She shivered involuntarily as the breeze lightly ruffled her hair.

'_Renkotsu…who **did** that to you? Those brutal attacks…you never even stood a chance.'_

The girl's thoughts came to her in bits and pieces, her brain still attempting to process what had happened.

'_I should have tried to…I mean I didn't even attempt to help you. Is it _my_ fault –**my fault**- that you died in such a way? I should've…should've-'_

The _clang_ of heavy metal slapping the ground echoed across the battlefield, breaking the miko out of her heavy thoughts.

'_Inuyasha!'_

Kagome took in the scene before her, all previous thoughts erased from her brooding mind as the hanyou lay trapped underneath the triumphant Bankotsu. Gripping her bow, she scuttled over the battle-scared terrain to help her friend.

The mercenary's blue eyes flamed with pride, a pride Kagome planned to wipe out as she readied her bow to fire.

'_Just in range. Damn you, Bankotsu. You really do plan to end this right now, don't you?'_

However, Inuyasha was clearly thinking along the same lines in dealing with the black haired man. Kagome let loose a tight sigh of relief as the positions of the two fighters reversed and Inuyasha regained the upper hand.

'_Ouch. Bet that taste of Inuyasha's claws hurt, didn't they Bankotsu?' _Kagome couldn't help but muse as she hurried over to them. '_I guess this really **is** the end of our problems with the Shichinintai…'_

The miko reached Inuyasha's side about the same time as Miroku and Sango and couldn't help but notice that both Jakotsu and Suikotsu were missing.

'_What if the same fate that bestowed Renkotsu happened to…? No! I can't think of that right now, I need my attention on what's going on here. I just can't…' _Kagome mentally jerked herself from those thoughts, feeling waves of horror and guilt beginning to roll upon her mind. Instead, she forced herself to focus on defiant blue eyes and blocked out the talking going on around her.

'_Those eyes of his…such a clear blue. Honest eyes, eyes that have seen many a thing. Blue eyes that are a mix of unshakeable loyalty and determination with hints of playfulness thrown in. What was this boy like before all of this? Before Naraku, the jewel, and everything else in between?'_

The wind chose at the moment to pick up and encase them all in it's chilly embrace. A tingling sensation tickled Kagome's mind and alerted the girl to who was nearby.

'_Kikyo.'_

Glancing towards Inuyasha, the scent that was most likely on the winds (scents, she was once told by Inuyasha, her feeble human nose didn't have a chance in the world at picking up) gave the dog demon a look that confirmed what the girl already knew.

Kikyo _was_ nearby; there was no doubt about it judging from the look on Inuyasha's face.

Kagome felt a part of her freeze up with gloom and she couldn't even stop a soft cry from bubbling up within her.

Noticing that their distraction was to his advantage, the mercenary took his opportunity to escape Tetsusaiga's sharp point. Though the bloody gorges made by Inuyasha's claws scoured deep upon him, Bankotsu and his Banryuu remained a dangerous threat.

But it seemed that the world was out to surprise Kagome as much as it could today, for Inuyasha's sudden refusal to continue the fight threw her as well as mercenary.

'_Kikyo,' _Kagome thought bitterly as she and the others slowly trudged away from the bewildered Bankotsu and after their hanyou.

---

They couldn't have been walking for long before Inuyasha found a way to vent his frustrations over "the group's" (more like Miroku and Sango) decision to stick together and not have anyone (Inuyasha) 'scouting' up ahead.

The monk and taijiya had only their modern friend's interest in mind, but an irritated Inuyasha had a way of hurting Kagome almost as much as the Inuyasha who darted off to his first love's side.

'_They shouldn't have bothered, Kikyo's aura has completely vanished,' _mused Kagome, _'though it did disappear awful quick. Wonder why she was in such a hurry?'_

Inuyasha was apparently wondering the same thing, expressing this in agitated movements and snappish remarks as he brooded.

It took only a few minutes before he boiled over and rounded on the unfortunate Kagome.

"Kagome! You had to have sensed Kikyo before I did, why didn't you tell me she was there!"

Kagome bit out each word in her response, clearly trying to keep a restraint on her anger. The poor miko was overtaxed emotionally and in no mood to put up with the hanyou.

"I **did not **sense Kikyo there before you did. I would have said something if I had."

Snorting, Inuyasha retorted, "Of course, what was I thinking? This it **you** I'm talking to. **You** wouldn't have sensed her."

Kagome gasped indigently. "What is _that _supposed to mean?"

"Nothing."

"Inuyasha, tell me what you meant!"

"I told you, I didn't mean anything by it."

"Inuyasha. Tell. Me. What. You. Meant." Kagome grounded out, nearly sputtering with rage over the half demon's flippant remarks.

Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha let loose another of his flippant statements, "All I'm saying is that if you trained your powers better, than they wouldn't be going to waste."

"_What?"_

"Well, it's obvious to anyone. If you trained up a bit, or tried a bit harder, you would be able to do more than you do now. More useful stuff."

"_Are you trying to say that I'm not useful just because I couldn't detect Kikyo earlier for you!"_

"You're the one who said it, not me."

"Inuyasha, that's quite enough," Sango attempted to cut in, but was met with the angry glares of both Kagome and Inuyasha. Holding up her hands in surrender, she backed off.

The miko's eyes flamed with barely contained emotion as they clashed with hard amber.

"Just what exactly are you trying to say, Inuyasha? I do plenty, same as everyone here!" Kagome spat out.

"That damned leader of the Shichinintai almost got me through the stomach because **you** distracted me! Renkotsu's attack almost hit you! If you had developed your powers more, you could have defended yourself better! Next time, neither of us may be so lucky!"

"So now I can't defend myself, Inuyasha? And it's **_my_** fault that you got distracted enough to almost get hit? It seems that everything I do doesn't meet your standards!"

Flashes of hurt overtook the anger in her eyes. She bowed her head, bangs covering her face.

Taken back, he muttered, "Kagome, I…I didn't mean it like that. I was just…"

A soft, tight voice answered him back, "You were just what? Letting me know I'm useless in almost all aspects of my life? That everything I do isn't perfect enough? No, Inuyasha, I think you made yourself perfectly clear."

Unable to take anymore, she spun to face the direction they had been traveling from and hurried away.

Inuyasha stared blankly at the miko's retreating form, unable to process what had happened in the scant time they had left the battlefield.

"Kagome…"

"Well Inuyasha, you really stepped in it big this time," chirped Miroku with fake cheerfulness.

This caused Sango to lightly whacked him over the head with her fist, while staring sadly in the direction Kagome had taken.

'_Kagome, my dear friend, I hope that one day you escape from this cycle of pain that Inuyasha brings to you. You of all people don't deserve a love of this sort, one riddled in constant pain. **Please, **Kagome, find another who makes you truly happy…' _Sango mused quietly over her friend's continuous agony, one she could do nothing about.

---

Racing across the rocky terrain with her bow jostling on her shoulder, Kagome ran blindly.

'_How **dare** he! After all I've done for him!'_ Kagome's mind raged as her legs flew beneath her. '_After all that's happened, even after all that! He…'_

Emotion caused the girl to slow to a stop as she attempted to regain composure. Chocolate eyes widened with surprise as they took in the surrounding land.

She had ended up at the foot of the forest; some yards back from where Inuyasha's and Bankotsu's fight had raged not so long ago. The forest appeared as desolate as always; an empty battlefield met her gaze.

Bankotsu was nowhere to be seen, much to the miko's relief.

'_Good, at least he's gone. One less problem I have to deal with,' _Kagome thought with a grim smile. She welcomed the calming effect the sweet air of the forest had on her, sucking in deep breaths full of it. Blocking off any thoughts, Kagome closed her eyes and opened herself up to the blissful feeling the scent of crushed pine needles had on her.

'_I love this smell, it's so comforting to me. I can just stand here all day, by the forest's edge, and just breath and breath and brea--**NARAKU?**' _

Kagome jolted her eyes open, peering into the forest's dank depths. Her grip on her bow tightened as her eyes darted everywhere, straining to see what her mind had sensed: the poisonous aura of Naraku.

'_That scum, he was probably here the whole time! Watching Inuyasha fight and calculating up more schemes!' _Concentrating even more so, she focused in on the dark aura. _'It's defiantly him, I'd know that disgusting aura anywhere. But it feels…gleeful? Like he's enjoying himself?'_ Puzzled, the girl reached even further with her mind. Out of the swirling denseness of Naraku's aura came the glimmers of shikon shards.

'_Is that…Kohaku? But Kohaku didn't have more than one shard last time, did he?'_ Shaking her head, Kagome thought, '_But I **can't **take the chance if it _is_ him. If something happens to Kohaku that I could have stopped…'_

Her mind, betraying her, whispered, _'Ah, but you could have done something to help Renkotsu, eh?' _

Wincing visibly, she pushed those thoughts away and plunged into the forest.

---

Concentrating on the vile aura, Kagome had only to follow it a few yards into the forest before spotting Naraku. Having cloaked her own aura before (_Ha! Inuyasha, take that! I **did** work on my powers and on defending myself_), she found herself hiding in the forest yet again watching evil do its work.

And this evil was currently…slamming _Bankotsu_ into a tree?

'_What?'_

---

Coughing up a bit of blood, Bankotsu attempted to glare furiously at Naraku while his head spun from blood loss and contact with the tree's hard surface. This impact had been one of many, courtesy of Naraku.

"Oi, Naraku, you did seem the type to beat a guy when he's down, ne?"

Naraku returned his attempted glare with smirk before whipping out a tentacle to throw the assassin into tree again.

---

Kagome watched in horror as Naraku continued to beat the black haired man.

'_The more pain he inflicts on Bankotsu, the larger the fleeing of glee his aura gives off is,' _she realized with revulsion. _'Bastard.'_

She stared helplessly as Bankotsu attempted to stand after every hit, and wincing along with him as he was struck down again.

'_Just stop trying to show you're tough, you idiot! Pride won't be enough to stop Naraku, especially with the wounds you got from Inuyasha earlier!' _Kagome thought fiercely.

---

Struggling to sit up, the braided mercenary paused a moment to wipe the blood from his mouth. Dark bangs shadowed his face as hetried to recover his breath. Even with shikon shards in his neck, the pain remained.

Sarcastically, almost half to himself, Bankotsu muttered, "How am I supposed to beat Inuyasha for you now, Naraku? Show him all my new bruises and hopes he runs away scared?"

"Even in perfect health, your attempts have been pitiful."

Bankotsu snarled back, "Watch what you're saying, or me and my Banryuu--"

"Will what? You couldn't even complete the simple task _I_ gave you. You and your band have been a waste of shikon shards, an error which I have already started to correct."

Jerking his head, Bankotsu looked up half startled. "_And just _**what**_ do you mean by that?"_

With a look of pure pleasure on his face, Naraku slowly pulled out a beaten gourd and some fragments of pointed metal. A sadistic gleam shined in cold eyes as Bankotsu stared uncomprehendingly at what was presented before him.

"This is all that remains of Renkotsu and Suikotsu."

---

"This is all that remains of Renkotsu and Suikotsu."

Kagome couldn't believe her ears and judging from the look on Bankotsu's face nor could he. Her gaze remained transfixed on his frozen face while his body began to shake with rage.

"You **Bastard**."

She was amazed at his attempt for control.

"_Damned_ half-demon!" He spat, lunging for Naraku.

'_So much for control,' _she found herself thinking as Bankotsu was swatted down in the manner one would do to an annoying fly.

_**'Well, if that's what it took to shut him up…' **_Kagome's own voice echoed back to her as she flashed back to the last time she had been hiding in the forest. '_Renkotsu…'_

'_Do I always make those kind of flippant comments when watching someone in pain?' _she thought to herself with revulsion.

Frozen in her hiding place, she saw the cycle of events repeating themselves as Bankotsu was pinned now against the tree, one tentacle twined firmly around his wrist with another poised above his fingers.

'_Is this all I can really do? Sit here and watch as Naraku tortures another person?' _

She flinched at the _crack_ of a bone being snapped. The sight of Bankotsu's face twisted with pain and horror as he was forced to watch his finger slowly pulled back until it could go no further was something she almost couldn't stomach.

'_Is Inuyasha right? Am I really useless?'_

She clenched her fists in frustration as two more of Bankotsu's fingers met the fate of the first.

'_It's happening again. It's happening again. He's going to kill him. Naraku is going to kill Bankotsu the same way he did Renkotsu and I can't seem to do anything to stop it!'_

Kagome bit down on her lip until it bled, fingernails cutting little half-moons into the palms of her hands as she shook from anger and building frustration.

'_Renkotsu didn't deserve to die the way he did. And I was right there –**right there**- and I didn't even _try_ to do anything to help him.' _Guilt swarmed her senses. _'I should've tried, I should've! It doesn't matter if they were mercenaries, or even people brought back from the dead! They are alive nowand a torturous traitorous death by the hands of Naraku is something **no one** deserves!' _

Bankotsu was beginning to let soft murmurs of pain escape from clenched lips.

_**'Icy tendrils of revulsion gripped her body as she tried to block out the antagonizing sounds of Renkotsu's screams.' **_

She couldn't stop the flashbacks from racing through her mind. She knew what would come next.

_**'Rising in pitch, the assassin wore his voice down close to nothing as his cries became more frantic and were soon dripping with pure agony.'**_

Kagome knew that with Bankotsu, the outcome would be no different than before.

_**'Renkotsu, pleading to his capturer for release from this torture, for second chances, was rewarded with only the escape of his most excruciating shrieks issued his lips yet.'** _

Phantom cries from Renkotsu ricocheted in her mind; she couldn't block them out.

**_'The sudden _crack**_** of crunching bones and squishing innards would be one that would haunt her nightmares for many long nights to come.'** _

Inuyasha's voice, taunting, _**'…**__**or tried a bit harder, you would be able to do more than you do now. More **useful** stuff.'**_

Was she **really** that useless?

_'… **crunching bones and squishing innards …'**_

_'… **crunching bones and squishing innards …'**_

**_'The sudden crack _of_ crunching bones and squishing innards!'_**

_-Crack-_The fate of Bankotsu's final fifth finger rang out through the forest.

---

The dark haired man's moan of pain pulled Kagome out of her transfixed state. Her body slowly started to rise, a pale hand reaching for her bow.

'_Calm, I must remain calm. I will not allow myself to become as useless as Inuyasha claimed me to be! I will not allow my mistake to be repeated!'_

Stepping out of her hiding place, she pulled her arrow back and aimed at Naraku's heart.

'_I did not help Renkotsu, but I **refuse **to have the same fate meet Bankotsu. I **will** break this cycle of pain and end all of this once and for all!'_

She released her arrow.

---

The sacred energy crackling around the arrow dimmed as it embedded itself into the trunk of the tree, having missed it's intended target. Bankotsu's eyes darted up to see the smoking arrow above his head, and then whipped it back to meet the determined gaze of… _the raven haired miko?_

Naraku turned slowly to face her, the corners of his mouth turned upward in the semblance of a smile.

"I was wondering when you would join us, Kagome."

------------

_-End of Chapter 4-_

I'm still on my "birthday high" since I just celebrated my bday 6 days ago, YAY! And thank god midterms are finally over and done with 'cause I couldn't take having to sit through another one!

Anyways, thanks for the reviews!


	5. Aiding Thy Enemy

Title: **Bumps** – Chapter 5  
Author: Squishy Penguin  
Rating: PG-13  
Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome  
Summary: She always appeared to be nothing more than a weak target, Inuyasha's wench. And yet, the more he tried to dismiss her from his mind, the more he found he couldn't. And for the leader of the Shichinintai, that's never a good thing.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

**NOTE: I'm not exactly sure how many jewel shards Bankotsu eventually has in his neck during the anime, but in my fic he has three (3).**

_---------------------------------------------------- _

"_Ouch!"_

"_Did you cut yourself again?"_

"_Yeah…" She put her chopping knife down next to a pile of neatly sliced vegetables in order to inspect her cut._

_She marveled at the bright red color welling up on her finger. She figured that after all this time, after all the blood she'd seen, she would be used to the sight of it._

_Bringing her hand slowly up to her mouth, she was mildly surprised to have another intercede it._

"_Let me do it."_

_Eyes soft, he bent his head. His gaze never leaving hers as his mouth closed gently around her finger._

---

The sacred energy crackling around the arrow dimmed as it embedded itself into the trunk of the tree, having missed it's intended target. Bankotsu's eyes darted up to see the smoking arrow above his head, and then whipped it back to meet the determined gaze of… _the raven haired miko?_

Naraku turned slowly to face her, the corners of his mouth turned upward in the semblance of a smile.

"I was wondering when you would join us, Kagome."

---

"I was wondering when you would join us, Kagome."

The girl blinked as the implication of his words reached her.

'He knew that I was there? But I shielded--' 

Her thoughts were cut off as Naraku continued. "I had sensed an aura, one that felt '_pure' _and '_warm.'_ Quite repulsive, really." He paused for a moment, studying her pale face.

Kagome's eyes narrowed. "Naraku! You better watch out because next time I shoot, the arrow will hit you!" The girl motioned to her bow as if to prove her point.

The hanyou chuckled in reply. "Miko, do not vex me. Your skills at the bow are pitiful."

"My skills are _just fine_. I've had enough people tell me that today, thank you very much. I don't need to hear that from **_you_.**"

"You're definably not much of an archer," he mused, gaze shifting towards the arrow imbedded above Bankotsu's head. "But I can't say you're not entirely hopeless when it comes to using your powers. I might have sensed a miko aura, but not who the miko_ was._'

He smirked at her surprised expression. "My, my, my. Kagome, you are turning into quite the little miko. What _are_ we going to do with you?"

The said miko felt a sense of twisted triumphant well up inside her upon hearing his words. She tried vainly to throttle it, but the warped satisfaction bubbled up regardless. '_It's about time someone recognized me, dammit! If **Naraku **can admit to it, why does Inuyasha refuse to see it?'_

Mentally, she slapped herself. '_Get a hold of yourself, girl! You need to focus here, not wallow in some sick compliment!'_

Naraku grinned wickedly, as if reading her thoughts.

"I **had** hoped that the miko was you."

---

Bankotsu watched silently as the girl stiffened, confusion crossing her features.

'_Damn, **what the **hell** is she doing here? **Was she here the whole time?' _He scowled at his current position of pinned-to-a-tree,_ '…how embarrassing…'_

Studying her, he noticed small scratches scattered across her face and her clothes littered with tiny tears. Little trickles of blood ran down from her arms and dripped onto the tightly clenched bow. '_Scratches from branches?' _A burn on her arm gave evidence to her earlier fight with Renkotsu.

Naraku's intentions themselves toward the girl mattered little to him, he simply didn't care. It was _decapitating_ the bastard hanyou, _making him bleed red _that was the main matter now. The prick who murdered his brothers in cold blood, the turncoat who went back on his word, the bastard who lived to torment others, the fiend whose life was not good enough to be taken upon Banryuu's blade.

'_I swear to you, Renkotsu and Suikotsu, Naraku will not get away with what he has done to you. I swear it,'_ Bankotsu silently vowed.

Naraku had taken away two of the few people Bankotsu had chosen to give a damn about, and the mercenary wasn't the type to forgive and forget.

…Of course, there _was_ the small matter of being pinned to a blasted tree, having the five fingers on his left hand painfully snapped back and broken along with a miko who had convinced herself that she just **had** 'help' him that he first had to deal with. Joy.

What had he done to offend Kami-sama this much?

…

Better not answer that.

---

"You'd hoped that the miko would be me? _Why?_"

"All in good time, all in good time."

Her eye twitched in response.

Curling her hands into tightly clenched fists of frustration, her gaze passed over Naraku's delighted smirk and came to rest on Bankotsu. Breathing heavily, his eyes shined with anger and frustration at the whole situation. But for the most part, the anger seemed to be now redirected at her.

'_Men. It doesn't matter who they are, they hate having to admit when they need help,' _she mentally sighed. An image of a scowling Inuyasha flashed through her mind._ 'Sometimes I wonder why I even bother…'_

"Perhaps Naraku just wanted a new whore?" a voice broke into her thoughts.

Kagome felt her irritation begin to rise as she stared at a cockily smiling Bankotsu. His blue eyes gleamed back at hers in challenge.

"What? Speechless? Or are you so overcome with pleasure at the mere thought of it?"

Her other eye twitched upon hearing Bankotsu's new bit of commentary.

"Or has Inuyasha finally had enough of you that now you have to find another powerful guy to cling on to?"

**-Her control snapped-**

"If that was true, _which it isn't,_ Naraku would be the second to last person I would **ever** go to!"

"Second to last, eh? So even ol'Naraku ranks above someone in your book?"

"At this very moment, yes."

"Do I even **want **to know who it is?"

"I'm looking right at him," she shot back smugly.

Glowering at her, he struggled vainly in anger against the tentacle pinning him in place.

"Wench! I am not someone to laugh about!"

"Who's laughing? I'm just being honest!"

His eyes flashed. "You just wait--"

"Wait for what? You're the one who _needed_ help because you went and got yourself beat up and trapped against a tree!"

"Who says that _I_ need _help_?" Bankotsu thundered.

Kagome smiled back saucily. "From the looks of it, _I_ say you do."

"**Sorry to break up** **the little party," **Naraku cut in, **"but I'd say that you **_both _**are going to be in need of some help when **_I _**am through with you."**

The miko and the mercenary jumped; clearly startled at the sound of Naraku's voice reminding them that he **was** still there. (Apparently the hanyou didn't like to be ignored by his quarry while in the middle of trying to speak mysteriously.)

"Miko."

She responded with the faintest of nods.

"I was not exactly sure of the reason why you came here, but now I may have come up with it. I made sure to give Renkotsu an additionally agonizing death _just_ for your viewing pleasure. Did you enjoy it so much that you came here for an encore performance?"

Naraku glanced towards the Shichinintai leader with amusement tickling his features.

"I'll make this one more enjoyable than the last."

---

Bankotsu bowed his head. His lips curled in disgust, knowing that Naraku meant every word he said.

Bangs shadowing his eyes, he spoke. "Naraku, I don't doubt the delight you must have felt while murdering Renkotsu and Suikotsu. I myself have felt the rush of satisfaction upon seeing your enemy lifeless and have known the thrill of having your blade slice through your foe's flesh as they beg for mercy…"

Bankotsu lifted his face then, meeting Naraku's gaze head on.

"Only _I _have **never** nor _will_ **ever** betray a comrade, _especially the ones who had been fighting your own battles for you,_ like how you did with those two! They were backstabbed, betrayed, deceived into yet another untimely death! And now you're planning on doing the same with me? Screw you! I won't let you!"

Naraku watched him silently until he stopped panting for breath.

"Finished?"

Bankotsu nodded defiantly.

"Well, that's good **_to hear!_**" Naraku cried, swinging yet another tentacle to whip Bankotsu across the face. He loosened the one trapping the mercenary against the tree only to re-slam him into it once again.

---

Kagome had been standing near Bankotsu and had to roll out of the way of the oncoming tentacles. Her bow was flung into the forest during her wild tumble to safety; it was lost to her. Looking around frantically for a way to help the trapped man, she spotted an arrow laying nearby.

Scooping it up, she realized it was the same arrow she had originally shot at Naraku: the one that had missed and had been embedded above Bankotsu's head. A swinging tentacle must have knocked it out.

'_Lucky break,'_ she thought grimly.

---

Bankotsu swore as he spat up a bit of blood.

'_This does not look good,' _he grimaced.

---

She gripped the shaft of the arrow, raising it above her head, steadying it, before plunging it down with all of her might.

---

A soft pink light flared up unexpectedly by one of hanyou's tentacles.

With a sudden flash of pain, Naraku looked to find the girl using one of her arrows to stab him repeatedly. Normally, this sort of 'attack' would have felt little more than a sting, a passing annoyance. But because that blasted girl was a miko, her sacred _ki _was shoved into him with every thrust of the arrow tip.

And she knew it too.

' _Damn her! That girl _is _becoming quite a skilled miko. She's learning to focus her powers productively and is constantly becoming an increasing threat…' _he raged.

Another thought flicked in his mind, a more pleasurable one. '…_Yet…'_

'…_she will be one of the keys to Inuyasha's downfall…' _

'…_and to…'_

Naraku grinned.

_---_

Kagome screamed as a tentacle wrapped around her body, causing her to drop the arrow as it lifted her upwards.

Struggle as she might, the grip of the tentacle would not loosen.

'Damn! What's going to happen now that Naraku has caught us both?' she wondered. 

Naraku laughed as he looked at both of their subdued faces.

"Where's all your tough talk now? What happened to all your threats?" the hanyou purred. "Look at you now, the self-proclaimed leader of the Shichinintai! _A wasteful use of shikon shards._"

He turned to Kagome, "And you, miko? Inuyasha is not here to save you when once more you are in need of his help. But then again, just judging from your performance here, _you're not very good at giving help yourself."_

His laughter filled the clearing, grating harsh upon the ears.

A tentacle hovered threateningly above Bankotsu's neck, poised.

'_What is Naraku up to? What does he plan to do?' _Kagome thought.

But Bankotsu seemed to have some speculative idea, for his face paled and his eyes widened with a…_hint of dread?_

The tentacle began to slowly wrap itself around Bankotsu's neck, squeezing tighter and tighter. The assassin's eyes bugled a bit, right hand clawing at the limb around his throat, mouth attempting to form uncompleted words.

Kagome watched this in unease. She had realized what Bankotsu had just figured out moments before she.

-A glint of light reflected into a prism of falling pink-

Naraku had just succeeded in getting the first of three shards embedded in Bankotsu's body to pop out.

---

The shikon shard fell as if in slow motion to those who watched its descent. Close to touching the ground, a tentacle slipped underneath it and halted its fall to bring it back to its master.

Sneering, Naraku tossed the shard lightly up and down in the air. From where it popped from Bankotsu's neck, a trickle of blood streamed down.

The mercenary started to thrash even more violently in an attempt to stop Naraku. Kagome watched on helplessly, pity and horror sweeping over her as she observed the black haired man's plight.

The tentacle tightened once again around his neck.

Seconds later, with a soft _ping_, the second of the shards launched itself into the air and into Naraku's waiting hands.

One remained between Bankotsu and bones.

---

Bankotsu tensed, waiting for the tentacles to finish off the job they had began. Defiance did not leave his eyes; he refused to go into death willingly.

_Yet…_

Instead of tightening, Naraku _loosened _the grip around his neck.

The tentacle gently patted the area of his throat where the final shard remained, and then pulled away.

Naraku himself leaned in closer to the bewildered man.

"Bankotsu, you think I would let you die in such a simple way? Did you really think I would _that_ generous? To merely remove the shards that would return you to the pile of bones which you were? Would I really bestow that kind of peaceful death on the worthless leader of the Shichinintai?"

A delighted grin spread across his features.

"Oh no, my _friend._ I have a much better plan for you. _You're just going to **love** it."_

The miko and the mercenary watched in horror as Naraku began to cackle insanely, his laughter ringing throughout the forest. The wind picked up, whipping across the land and stinging the eyes of the two captives.

'_Inuyasha! Sango! Miroku! Shippo!'_

'_Kuso! What in the hells…?'_

Their world then exploded into a sea of blinding white and Kagome and Bankotsu knew no more.

-------------------

_**A/N:** So ends yet another chapter. It's a bit late because I didn't care for the first version very much and ending up scrapping and rewriting it. Oh well, what you don't do right the first time you get right the second, ne?_

_Anyways, I'm off to watch InuYasha Volume 39. I just bought it yesterday and have been dying to watch all the Bankotsu moments :)_

_Thanks for all the encouraging and lovely reviews!_


	6. Waking From White

Title: **Bumps** – Chapter 6  
Author: Squishy Penguin  
Rating: PG-13  
Pairing: Bankotsu/Kagome  
Summary: She always appeared to be nothing more than a weak target, Inuyasha's wench. And yet, the more he tried to dismiss her from his mind, the more he found he couldn't. And for the leader of the Shichinintai, that's never a good thing.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

_-------------------_

"_Now don't move."_

_She pouted, delicate lips pursed in a frown. "Are you almost done yet?"_

"_Almost, almost. Now quit rushing me. These things take time, you know."_

_She stifled a giggle at the determined look that adorned his face. "I never knew you to be an artist."_

"_I'm not. I just wanted to try it out, okay? There, it's done."_

_She came over to him and feasted her eyes on his masterpiece._

"_Err…wow, it's wonderful!" She exclaimed, smile plastered on her face._

_He winced. "It's that bad, huh?"_

"_No, not at all!"_

"_Just admit it, you look like a cow."_

_She twitched. "I look like a…cow?"_

_He gulped. "No, no! I mean in the portrait, not in real life!"_

_She tried not to grin at his fumblings. "You know what this means, right?"_

"_N-no?" He didn't trust that look in her eye._

_She grinned at him wickedly. "I'm going to have to prove to you how **un**-cow like I could be."_

------------

_**Recap:**_

A delighted grin spread across his features.

"Oh no, my _friend._ I have a much better plan for you. _You're just going to **love** it."_

The miko and the mercenary watched in horror as Naraku began to cackle insanely, his laughter ringing throughout the forest. The wind picked up, whipping across the land and stinging the eyes of the two captives.

'_Inuyasha! Sango! Miroku! Shippo!'_

'_Kuso! What in the hells…?'_

Their world then exploded into a sea of blinding white and Kagome and Bankotsu knew no more.

---

_She was floating in white, clothed by white, gripped by white. It had come over her so suddenly, invading her mind and cloaking it with thoughts of itself, lulling her into the white world._

_She remembered struggling, fighting to keep from sinking into this misty lake. She could feel Naraku's leering stare as she succumbed. _

_Going under, final thoughts escaped her like a bubble springing from the lips of a drowning person._

'_Where is…what happened…to…to…t…'_

_She could not remember the name she wished to speak._

_---_

"Kyyyyyyyyah!"

Kagome launched herself into a sitting position, her thumping heart and stricken lungs requiring more air then she could give them at the moment.

'_I was drowning in that sea. I couldn't escape it. It was just so big and my body just felt so heavy…' _she whimpered, '_It felt so realistic, so real! I thought I was going to die.'_

She shuddered. Her hand gripped her pounding heart and her gaze sputtered everywhere.

'_I'm on a bed.' _Kagome thought distantly. '_And there's a candle holder and a bookcase and a…and…a…'_

She felt her mind begin to slip and she struggled to regain her hold on her fuzzy thoughts.

'_Why am I…on a bed? This room…so empty and cold…evil lurking all over here.'_

Kagome narrowed her eyes in concentration.

'_I was…I was doing something, something important. I was trying to **help** someone. But who?'_

Her sight had finally started to adjust to the bleakness of this place—whatever this place _was. _The girl stared miserably down at her hands, glaring as if they held the answers to her questions.

'_I shot an arrow with these hands very recently…it missed. I remember that.'_

She furrowed her brow, gaze coming to rest on a dismal corner of the room.

'_I remember…angry words. A broken gourd, shards of metal. I feel the heat of raging flames and the touch of a tentacle wrapping around my body.'_

Kagome shuddered again. '_The screams…horrible, horrible screams.'_

The corner she had been staring out was slowly starting to come into focus with the passing minutes it took for her sight to alter itself to the dim lighting.

'_The arrow…the arrow I shot, the one that was embedded in a tree…I had meant it for Naraku but instead…instead I almost hit…'_

The end of a dark braid materialized in the corner of the room.

"**Bankotsu!"**

---

The mercenary groaned as he felt the grip of the white slitter away from his mind. His body throbbed, limbs painfully stiff. Unfocused blue peered out into the semi lit room.

'_Shimatta…I can barely move.'_

He made the mistake of attempting to curl his righthand and was rewarded with pain flaring up his entire arm.

'_Damn you Naraku. What the hell did you do? Where the fu--'_

"Bankotsu!"

The said assassin jerked his head up in surprise upon hearing his name echo throughout the small room. He recognized the voice and face it belonged to.

'_Her again…?'_

_---_

"YOU!" They both shouted at each other accusingly, pointer fingers outstretched.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

She stared at him in surprise.

Bankotsu's good hand searched the floor around him as he watched the girl in front of him like a hawk. Clenching his left fist, azure eyes narrowed into slits.

"**Kuso.** Where is my _Banryuu?_" His face darkened with intense fury. "Dammit! No one takes my baby from me, not without paying with their _lives. __Naraku_! I'm going to rip you apart—limb from _fu_-unless it was **_you_, **girl! Did you take my Banryuu from me? You won't live to regret such a foolish move!" he yelled wildly.

Kagome swallowed angrily at the false accusations. Given, he wasn't thinking as clearly as he always seemed to, but to blame her? She, who had only regained consciousness moments before he had?

"Don't be foolish, I couldn't even _lift_ Banryuu, not to mention _take_ it from you."

Bankotsu scowled, sensing truth in her words as she spoke them. Banryuu's loss was a harsh blow, but jumping to irrational conclusions would get him no closer to retrieving it.

"Ha! What could I've been thinking? You're right in that respect…a puny girl, take my Banryuu?" His mouth twisted into a cruel smile. "So why don't you just get the message? Get lost," he snarled.

She blinked at the change in topic.

"…?"

"What? Have you gone mute or somethin'?"

"No!" she snapped. "I just thought you had finally gotten it through that thick skull of yours that you had needed my help."

Bankotsu nearly hit the roof.

"And. How. Many. Times. Will. It. Take. You. To. Realize. I. Didn't. Need. H.e.l.p? I am the leader of the Shininchitai! I am the one who **_causes_** the problems that make others seek help!"

He began to struggle to stand while he spoke. The jerking moments of his limbs brought a pinched look to his already pale face. Gingerly keeping pressure off his broken fingers, he waged a war to stand against his already strained limbs. His wound from the Inuyasha battle had opened up for a second time, dripping blood with a steady _pat_ onto the floor.

"You're going to get an awful scar if you don't close up that wound soon," Kagome called from her safe position on the bed.

"Shut. Up."

"Fine, don't listen to me. You'll have a gigantic scar along with five crookedly healed fingers."

"Go to hell!"

---

Kagome looked on at the struggling Bankotsu, perfectly content to watch as he proceeded to prove her right. He needed another body to assist in supporting him if he wished to move away from the wall.

"Will you stop staring at me, wench?" He twitched with annoyance at the knowing look she had plastered on her face.

"Should I take up wall watching then?"

"If that's what makes you happy."

'_Jerk. He really knows how to get underneath my skin, like a pesky tick or something.'_

She watched his progress, or the lack of it.

'_If there's one thing I have to say about this guy, he sure doesn't know when to give up. He's just going to hurt himself even more if he doesn't stop soon. What's he trying to prove?' _

---

"You know, my name isn't wench."

Concentration broken, he leaned his back against the wall and glanced up at the girl.

"What?"

"I said, my name isn't _wench_."

"Does it look like I care?"

Kagome continued, undaunted. "I don't know why all males of the Feudal Era get that idea. Why? Is there something about me that just makes guys think that way?"

'…_huh? 'Feudal Era?' What the hell is that? What's she yapping about now?'_

"'Feudal Era?' Wench, what the hell are you talking about?"

Bankotsu could have sworn that he saw a look of panic flicker across her face, but her expression changed too quickly for him to confirm it.

"I _told_ you. My name is not **wench. **Stop calling me that! You're sounding like Inuyasha when you say that."

Bankotsu shuddered at the mere thought of being related to the hanyou.

"I am Kagome. Ka-Goh-May."

He smirked at the opening she had just given him.

"Whatever you want, Ka-Goh-May."

---

'_Argh! That annoying, exasperating, vexing, troublesome little brat! He **enjoys **bugging me! Why do I even bother?' _Kagome ranted in irritation. She was running out of insults to call him.

"Oi, girl, just where the hell are we anyway?"

His voice brought her back from her soon-to-be full-fledged rant about him in her mind. He was still sitting in the corner, back against the wall. Kagome reasoned he must have taken a break from attempting to stand. '_It's about time too…'_

"We're in a dusty, dimly lit room."

Bankotsu rolled his eyes. "Gee, now tell me something I don't know."

"Hey! I was just stating the obvious. I know as much as you, equating to nothing, zip, zero, nada. We could be on the other end of the world for all I know!"

"Once more, thanks for being oh so helpful," he muttered sarcastically.

"You're welcome," Kagome replied back just as sweetly.

'_Arigato, Kami-sama.'_

He never realized that she hadn't answered his question.

---

Kagome sighed for what seemed like the millionth time. A few hours, she reasoned, had passed since she and her prickly companion had woken up. She, at Bankotsu's persistence, had gotten off the bed and explored around the room. The girl hadn't found much, though the surplus of dust was quite impressive.

She _had_, however, found a door. That had to count for something, right?

Too bad that it was locked.

She sighed again, rolling over on her side on the reclaimed bed. She had even attempted to pick the lock under Bankotsu's directions, but it was to no avail. All it got them was the mercenary grumbling under his breath how he could have punched down the door if it weren't for his right hand.

Kagome lifted her head to glance over at the black haired man. He had dozed off a little while ago and she hadn't bothered waking him.

'_Ha! It would be like waking a sleeping demon,' _she thought dryly. '_So **not** a good idea.'_

Her gaze fell on the locked door, her mind willing it to open.

'"**Oh no, my _friend._ I have a much better plan for you. _You're just going to love it."'_**

Naraku's last words rang through her mind again as she puzzled over their meaning.

'_Just what is that monkey up to? What does he plan to do?' _She scowled. '_By all means, I wish he would just hurry up and do it 'cause I'm getting bored out of my mind here!'_

Grumbling, she turned over to lay on her back and stared at the ceiling.

'_One little crack in the ceiling, two little cracks in the ceiling, three little cracks in the ceiling, four little cracks in the ceiling, five little cracks in the ceiling, six little cracks in the ceiling, se…'_

She shook her head. '_Bad Kagome, bad. Counting cracks in the ceiling is what crazy people do in situations like this. You're not a crazy person.'_

'_And how did you end up here again?' _her inner voice purred.

'_Shut up.' _She groaned.

---

Bankotsu watched the girl's restless movements with half lidded eyes. _'She's counting ceiling cracks now? And she said **I** was the one who needed help?' _he thought dryly.

"Going a little stir crazy there?"

Kagome jumped slightly and moved her position to face him.

"And just how did you determine that?"

"You're counting the cracks in the ceiling," he said bluntly.

She shifted uncomfortably, a light blush staining her cheeks. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"My ass you don't know what I'm talking about," Bankotsu replied, grinning.

She looked away from his smirking smile, embarrassed. "Well, some of us don't have the luxury of falling asleep while in enemy hands!"

"You suggest something else to pass the time? Would you have us sing songs then? Or how about arousing game of 'guess the number?' We could even share stuff about ourselves. You know, the kind of stories that leave you with that _warm_ fuzzy feeling?" he drawled sarcastically.

Kagome rolled her eyes. "And just how old are you again?"

'_Well, this is certainly one way to pass the time.'_

He grinned.

"486."

---

Yep, it's one of those filler chapters with the first real solo Kag/Ban interaction. Though all they really did was argue. Can't expect them to get along right away, eh? Originally, this chapter **was** going to be another couple of pages _but_…then it would've ended in a cliffie. :gasp: …_and_ I didn't feel like being strung up and tortured not only for the long wait but also for what would have been the 3rd cliffhanger in a row.

About the wait…yeah. I'm terribly sorry about that, school has been driving me out of my mind. First I had to get through the last month of third quarter (I didn't go to bed until after 12:30 for almost a month:tear:) And when that was finally over, I had to prepare for my AP English and SAT tests that were literally a day apart from another.

Anyways, I'll do my best with the updates. I'm taking the SAT II in June so that should give me plenty of time to start typing up Chapter 7 before _that_ major test hits.

As always, thanks for all the heartening reviews!


	7. What Forms Only To Break

**Chapter 7:**

_What Forms Only To Break_

"Speaking"

'_Thoughts'_

------------------------------

_He loved to watch her sleep._

_She would be curled up next to him, her back wedged against his stomach and his arms wrapped around her soft body protectively. _

_Her hair smelt of strawberries._

_It was actually the warmth of her skin and the sound of her quiet breathing that eased him off into sleep every night. _

_Sometimes her hair would tickle his nose, or her leg would give a little twitch in her sleep that would rouse him from his own slumber._

_He didn't mind though._

_For waking up would mean that he would get to fall asleep next to her all over again._

------------------------------

'_Aren't doors supposed to come with doorknobs?'_ Kagome grumbled to herself as she stared ruefully at the only entranceway her prison had.

"You _do_ know that that door just won't magically open itself no matter how long you've been giving it the death glare," her unwanted companion drawled from his position on the floor across from her.

"In another second, this 'death glare' will be turned on you!"

"Ooh, I'm scared now! Whatever shall I do when the Girl fixes me with her stare of death?" he chortled. "How about I'll just glare right on back?" The amusement on his face was replaced by mockery. "That's about the most dangerous thing you can do, eh? Shooting people dirty looks and hoping that'll do the trick."

A thought passed across his face, changing his expression from scornful back to amusement yet again.

"Wait, my mistake Girl. I forgot to include **doors** in _this _case," he broke off, snorting in laughter.

It was only the fact of Bankotsu forgetting that he had sore ribs that gave Kagome any sort of satisfaction when she saw his wincing while snickering at her.

'_Is that how it's going to be? Tic for Tac? A punch for a blow? Can't he ever seriously speak with me instead of taking me for a fool? He couldn't even be serious about his own age. 486? Yeah right, he looks about 19 to me. 486, ugh.'_

Without batting an eye, she replied sarcastically, "Now, I know I may have only mentioned this, say, about _four_ times now, but did it ever occur to you that I _do_ have a name? My parents decided that "Girl" just didn't fit me and decided to go with _Kagome_ instead."

He paused, as if hearing this for the first time. Then a grin split across his features.

"Nah, I think I like "Girl" better for you."

She chose to not even dignify that with an answer. Instead, she turned her gaze solidly back towards the door and resumed her watch.

"Remember earlier? When you made that comment about resorting to 'wall watching?' I never thought that you would _actually_ do it; with a door no less!"

'_Stay calm, Kagome. He's just trying to bait you because he's bored, can't move around by himself, and has nothing else to do but spend his time annoying you. Don't rise to the bait. Don't give him the satisfaction of knowing he's getting to you.'_

So she opted to remain with her back pressed against the headboard of the bed, eyes trained on the door to her right.

"Ignoring me now, are you?"

She allowed silence to be her reply.

"You see, your problem is that you let words get to you very easily."

Silence again.

"It's quite childish of you to react like this. You're too sensitive, like all women are."

Frustration laced her answer. "You really don't know when to stop, do you?"

"What do you suggest I do then? I hate to admit it, but I'm not really in any position to be busting down any doors right now. And it's all thanks to that damn Naraku and your _beloved_ hanyou. Remind me to return the favor next time I see that mutt."

"_Inuyasha_ may be a half breed, but he's more of a man than _you_ are. He might be crude sometimes; even rude, but at least he's _honorable_."

Bankotsu's eyes darkened to a murky blue.

"'_Honorable?'"_

"Yes, _honorable."_

The mercenary shifted angrily from his floor bound position, pain flittering across his face as he accidentally moved his bad hand.

"Then you don't even know the meaning of the word."

"Honorable: deserving or winning honor and respect; possessing and characterized by honor. So there!" she shot back, sticking out her tongue.

"Like I said before, you don't know the meaning of the word if you put Inutrasha's name in the same sentence as it."

"What do _you_ know of honor? You, the man who **_kills_** others for enjoyment."

Outrage burned through Bankotsu's body.

"So you call running off in the middle of battle to another woman is what makes one more deserving of the title than I?"

Kagome flinched at the low blow, feeling as if Bankotsu had physically stood up and slapped her. _'I didn't even know…that he knew about Kikyo.' _

"The truth hurts, doesn't it Girl?"

"Just shut up."

"_Doesn't it?"_

"**Shut up."**

A self-satisfied smile crossed his face. "It _does._"

"SHUT UP!"

"Make me."

Kagome's fingers clenched the sheet beneath her tightly, nails digging into the fabric. She bit down on her bottom lip so hard that she tasted the metallic flavor of her blood seeping from the spot. Her body was tense with un-vented rage and embarrassment.

"C'mon, _make me _'shut up.'_"_

She met his gaze, his blue oozing with contemptuous hate.

"Or are you afraid to? _Make me._"

'_So much hatred and rage in his eyes. Is it all for me? For the situation we're in? Or is it directed at everyone in the world who's done him wrong? I guess I'll never know. However, no matter how much I want to, and boy,' _she thought to herself, _'boy, do I _**want **_to, but flying at him in a rage is not going to solve anything.'_

She forced herself to rip her gaze away from his and redirect it back at the door.

He chuckled, low and deep.

"That's just what I thought you'd do."

She made herself to continue to stare at the door, cramming down any harsh comeback that attempted to come spilling up from her throat.

"After all, it's like I said. You hope that one glance of your 'Death Glare' will do the person in and they'll leave you alone. You're all talk and no bite."

Kagome could feel his gaze boring holes in her body as she refused to answer him with hate for hate.

'_I'll be the bigger person here, even if it means swallowing my pride for right now. Besides, if what I'm even _considering_ to ask of him comes to pass, I'd best know how to say it right.'_

She allowed the next thirty minutes to pass along in heavy silence, feeling the weight of every ticking second and the burning blue flames of his stare pressing heavily against her as she deliberated.

------------------------------

'_I must have really pissed off her with what I said,' _Bankotsu thought contently to himself as he watched her, knowing full well his gaze was making her uncomfortable.

'_She's been quiet for quite a while now, just looking at that blasted door. It won't open itself, but she looks at it as if it'll be her saving grace. Hmph.'_

He noticed that her fingers had never loosened their steel grip on the dusty sheets.

'_She's still angry, eh? If anything, she should readdress her wrath towards the hanyou instead of at me for simply stating what she probably already knows,' _his face darkened, _'she really pushed it with her 'honorable' remark. Her blinding ignorance I just couldn't let go without saying something right back. If I had Banryuu right now, **then she wouldn't have her head.** Inuyasha, 'honorable' indeed. Hmph.'_

He heard her sigh deeply, the sound of it breaking him from his thoughts, and he watched her slowly turn her head to look at him.

'_And so, she speaks._'

------------------------------

'_At least he doesn't look as enraged as he did before,' _she mused to herself, _'it makes what I have to say easier, I guess. It's the only thing that I can do right now that may help me leave this place with my life. But it's still just a long shot, really.'_

She cleared her throat.

"Bankotsu, listen, I—"

"Talking to me again, are you?"

She blinked, taken back.

"Look, I know—" she tried again.

"Because I just want to be sure if you decided to make it talk time again. Just to be clear."

"Do you _enjoy_ irking me?"

"Yes." he grinned.

She rolled her eyes. _'It's like he only has two modes, scornful mocking and deathly rage. Has he no median?' _

"I've been thinking," she started.

"There's a scary thought."

"You don't like me."

"Indeed."

"And I don't like you."

"No kidding."

"We both can't stand each other."

"And you only just realized that _now?_" he asked her sarcastically.

"Will you let me _finish _for once and just shut up and **listen?**"

"Fine, fine," he grumbled, "go on."

"We both hate each other, it's basically the only thing we can agree on right now. It's about the only thing that we both know for certain, that we both know is not going to suddenly change without a moment's notice."

She paused, waiting for some sort of interruption from Bankotsu. There wasn't one. Her unruly companion was giving her his full attention and actually listening to what she had to say.

'_It's a nice change.'_

"Anyways," she continued, "it's about the **only** thing we _do _know. We don't know where we are…what Naraku plans to do with us…what's gonna happen…" she trailed off.

Bankotsu waited silently for her to go on.

Sighing, she decided to just come out and say it and to stop beating around the bush. Rising off the bed, she walked across the rough wooden floor to cross the short distance between she and the dark haired man.

Sinking down, she sat level with him on the floor. He studied her, puzzled over her sudden seriousness and movement towards him.

'_He really doesn't know what I'm going to ask him.' _

She looked him in the eye, willing him to take what she said and consider it.

"Look, I know with what I'm about to say next you're going to automatically want to say no to, but promise to really think about it before you answer. Okay?"

He nodded in response.

'_I know that this is really my only option right now, as much as I don't want to do it. But there's nothing else I can really do. Even if he does accept, even if he _does_ see my reasoning and agrees with it, can he really hold to it? When it comes down to it, can I expect him to be true to his word?'_

His blue gaze stared steadily into hers, his face a picture of concentration.

'_When it comes down to it, can I really expect him to be as 'honorable' as he claims?' _

'_Can I?'_

'…_But what other choice do I have?'_

'_**There is no other choice,'** _her mind whispered harshly to her.

'_Then I'll have to believe him.' _

Kagome took a deep breath before continuing. "Bankotsu, we may dislike each other immensely and in normal situations I would have **never** even thought to suggest this, but this _isn't_ a normal situation. We don't know what we're up against here and we're both injured, you more than I. We're without weapons. We're without a plan. We're without anyone but ourselves. We hate each other, but each other is all we have right now. Do you see where I'm going with this?"

Bankotsu nodded again, realization about what she was asking of him dawning in his eyes.

"You want us to work together…don't you Girl?"

------------------------------

"That _is_ what you want to do, isn't it?" he questioned her again. "You want us to form an alliance while we're here and work against Naraku, right?"

"…yes, that is exactly what I am suggesting."

"And what makes you think that I would agree to work with a weakling like yourself? A defenseless girl who would cause more trouble for me rather than aid?"

"Because I'm all you got."

"And maybe I want to remain by myself?"

"Then how will you ever move from your spot on the floor?"

He grunted in response.

"The miko Kaede has taught me some herb lore that helps with injuries. I can help you heal faster than you normally would. And I can shoot arrows with spiritual energy."

He sighed heavily, studying her earnest face.

"And what would you want **me** to do in this little alliance of yours?"

"Don't suddenly decide to cut me down without a second thought," she answered promptly.

"And?"

"And fight against Naraku with me. We can help each other get out of here and back to our friends."

"You do remember that that bastard has killed two of my three remaining friends?"

"_Of course I do._ But you still have Jakotsu, right? Isn't he your closest friend?"

"He is."

"There you go. I have my friends waiting for me, as do you. I do recall you yelling something about having your revenge on Naraku for betraying you and your Shichinintai. Joining together with me right here, right now will put you one step closer to that goal."

"…"

"And it would only be for now. Once we leave this place, we can pretend that it never happened, never existed. Things will go right back to how they were between us. Foes, rivals, _whatever_ you want to call us, we'll go right back to being it and all thoughts of an alliance formed between us will have evaporated as if never there."

He stared at her, considering all she had said and weighting his options.

"One last question," he asked her.

"Yes?"

"How am I supposed to know that you won't suddenly turn on me?"

"How do I know that you wouldn't suddenly turn on _me?_" she countered. "Like I said before, I certainly don't like you and you don't like me. An alliance won't change that fact. But we're _all we have_ right now. I'll have to believe that you'll keep to your word, as you'll have to believe that I'll keep to mine."

"I told you that I don't need nor want your help."

"Then don't think of this as help. Think of this as an understanding between two enemies."

"I'm taking a chance here with you, girl."

"So am I with you."

"And if I even hear one word of me agreeing to be in an alliance with you, I'll rip your throat out before you even knew what hit you."

"So you agree to an alliance?"

He let loose a long sigh; grimacing at the pain it caused his ribs.

"…I don't see how I have much of a choice."

Her eyes brighten with relief, and she broke their locked gazes to look back at the door then back at him.

"I still hate you, you know."

She grinned, and moved away from him to sit on the bed again.

"And I still hate you too."

------------------------------

Kagome yawned, exposing white teeth. She had fallen asleep a few hours ago, she guessed. It was difficult to tell time without a proper timepiece.

'_Oh well, a few hours of sleep can't hurt a person. So much for what I told Bankotsu earlier about falling asleep in enemy hands…I'm just as bad as he is. Dammit.'_

Rolling over on her side, she studied the door.

'_They say a watched pot never boils. I wonder if it's the same with doors?' _

Suppressing a groan, she pulled her aching body into a sitting position. '_At least all the cuts I got in the forest stopped bleeding, mostly. And the burn from Renkotsu doesn't look as bad as it did before. Or maybe it's just the dim lighting in here that's making me think that?'_

Raising up a hand, she rubbed sleep from her eyes and looked over towards the mercenary.

'_Looks like he fell asleep as well. Good thing he doesn't snore.'_

She lifted herself off the bed and drifted slowly over to where Bankotsu slept fitfully. Bending down, she leaned forward to study his battered body. The wound he had gotten from Inuyasha has finally stopped bleeding, but it looked deep enough to require stitches. His fingers on his right hand had turned purplish and were beginning to swell as well. Taking into account all the other nicks and scrapes he had accumulated, the man was in rough shape.

Kagome shook her head. _'His fingers are starting to look like little purple sausages. He needs to take of that and all of his other injuries soon before infection sets in.' _

'_But what can I do about it? He doesn't want any help, he's made **that** clear enough by now. Even though he's agreed to my plan of joining together, I'd best avoid pissing him off for now. Even with his word and even in his current state, if he decided he wanted me dead I won't stand that much of a chance in my unarmed and injured state.' _

Yawning, she thought sleepily, _'It would be best for me in the long run to just hold my tongue and let him do as he pleases.'_

Suppressing another yawn, she pulled herself into an upright position and backed away from the mercenary to walk to the bed. Easing herself onto it, she made herself comfortable as sleep threatened to overtake her once again. Ignoring the pain her body pulsed with, she threw the door once last rueful look before nodding off to sleep once again.

------------------------------

'…_little miko…'_

'…_miko…'_

The girl on the bed stirred in her sleep, the whispering in her ear rousing her.

'…_miko…'_

She shivered in her sleep as the whispers grew louder.

'…_little miko…'_

'…_miko…'_

'…_Ka…go…me…'_

'_Kagome!' _

Startled awake, the girl threw open her eyes only to come face to face with prime evil itself smiling down at her.

"Naraku."

------------------------------

The girl's sudden shriek was what stirred Bankotsu from his sleep. His beaten body flared with hurt as if it had sensed its owner's awakened state and complied to increase the pain level.

'_If that girl having a bad dream or something and woke me up because of it, I swear I'll…'_ he trailed off, grumbling to himself. '_At least she has a bed to fall asleep on, this wooden floor isn't exactly the most comfortable thing in the worl—SHIMATTA!'_

It was only then he had noticed the hanyou bending over the girl's bed, leering into her shocked face as she scrambled to get as far away as possible from him. Sliding off the bed, she walked quickly over to where he sat and turned to face Naraku.

'_Kuso! How could I have not realize that he was here? How long were we sleeping before he woke us up? Dammit, how can I defend myself against him as I am now?' _

Naraku chuckled, a sound that made Bankotsu's skin creep across his body.

"Well, well, well! It seems that you two have made yourselves comfortable here in my castle."

"Is that where we are? One of your castles?" the miko demanded.

"But of course! You're in the guest room of my most hidden and protected castles. Are you not enjoying your stay?"

"Bastard!" he shouted at the hanyou.

"Now, is that any way to treat your host?"

"It's the way I treat those who are worth less than horse dung!" Bankotsu shot back.

Naraku didn't even flinch. "I suppose you're going to have to work on your manners during your stay here."

'_Stay? Wha…what does he mean by **stay?'**_

The girl gasped in outrage. "Do you mean you're going to be keeping us here even longer?"

"Oh yes, my dear little miko. You and that worthless waste of shikon shards over there will be here for quite some time if things go the way I plan," Naraku said gleefully.

"And just what do you **_plan_** to do with us?" the mercenary commanded of their 'host.'

The monster smiled, a little demented grin.

"I _did _tell you that you were going to love what I had planned for the both of you, didn't I? And I'm not one who backs down on their promises. No, you're just going to _adore_ this new little development," he oozed.

"**Dammit! **Just _tell _us what you want and stop jerking us around!"

"You want to know what _I _want? Are you sure? Because it's priceless, really. Oh, I can't wait any longer. I just have to tell you and see the expressions on your faces!"

His grin grew and his voice dropped to a whisper.

"What _I _want is your blood. What _I_ want is your pain. What **_I_** want is to be able to watch your suffering and toast to your gruesome deaths."

Eyes widening with excitement, Naraku's voice began to rise in pitch.

"What _I _want is for you two to **rip** each other apart without mercy."

The hanyou leered at them, teeth sharp and pointy.

"What **_I_** want is for you two to fight one another. What **_I_** want is for one of you to _kill _the other.** _What I want is a fight to the death and I want one of you to _**_die **by the other's hand**_"

He started laughing insanely; the sound reaching an incredibly high level as he cackled at the two's staggered faces.

------------------------------

She stared at the hanyou, her mind barely comprehending the situation. Whatever Kagome had expected Naraku to say, it had never even come close to this. She felt completely numb. It was as if the world had suddenly dropped away from her to leave her falling through a deep, dark hole that ended with her fighting Bankotsu, her supposed ally.

Wetting parched lips, a lump suddenly in her throat, she attempted to speak only to find that no words would come out.

Glancing over at her companion, she found him to be deep in concentration, surprised but not as floored as she. '_Maybe because he thinks he has a better chance at defeating me and leaving this place? Oh crap, what the hell am I going to do?'_

She felt Bankotsu shifted restlessly next to her, his body tense with outrage as he opened his mouth to speak.

"You're crazy," he told Naraku flatly. "You're completely out of your mind. To think that _I_ would do anything that **_you_** ordered **_me_** to do? Stupid bastard. And if that wasn't enough, don't you even see the loophole in what you've told us?"

"A '_loophole'_ you say?"

"I won't repeat myself again for the likes of you."

"So, why don't you…enlighten me then. What is this 'loophole' you're _so _sure exists?" the hanyou purred.

"What if we decide not to fight one another? What if we choose not to bend to what you demand of us and do as we please? Will you kill us? I would rather die now than be forced to play a part in any twisted game of yours! Face it, you can't make us fight if we don't want to."

She blinked in surprise, having not even thought of that herself. '_…though he's only saying that because he doesn't want to do what Naraku tells him to…'_

Bankotsu spoke again, voice growing more confident with each word as he turned to face her. "After all, it's not like he can control our bodies, our wills. If we refuse to fight, there's nothing he can do to make us, right?"

Kagome nodded in agreement and looked back at Naraku again.

Yet instead of the rage they had expected to find after tearing a hole into his 'master plan,' the monster was grinning once again.

"_Ah_, but don't you see? I can make you _and I will. _Kanna?"

From the unlocked door, the somber little girl drifted in at her master's call.

"Yes, Naraku-sama?"

"Kanna, show them."

The little girl, with her eyes as blank and frigid as snow, turned to face Bankotsu and Kagome and rose up her mirror so that they could see.

'_Just what is Naraku up to? What is he having Kanna show us? What does he have that will guarantee the both of us doing what he says?'_

The mirror's clear surface swirled with color, shaping and reshaping itself into a two images that flashed across its surface.

An image of Jakotsu. An image of Kikyo. Both chained, both unconscious, both in Naraku's grasp.

Mouths agape, the two stared from the mirror to Naraku and back to the mirror once again.

The monster laughed.

"Don't you _see?_ Don't you _understand?_ If you two don't fight one another, if you don't do as I say, than I'll see to it that these two," he gestured towards the mirror, "that this poor pair of weak, helpless _victims_ meet a rather… _unfortunate _end."

He laughed again.

"These two are completely at your mercy. Their lives are in your very hands. Their futures and fates are entirely up to you. So, what _do_ you plan to do about it?"

Bankotsu turned towards Kagome, his eyes steely and hard as he bluntly stated the obvious.

"Well, that sure blows _your_ plan to hell."

------------------------------

**_Chapter started: _**7/27/06

**_Chapter completed: _**7/29/06 _at_ 11:34_pm_

Sorry for the incredibly long wait for this chapter! I won't go into details, but I just had a lot of stuff going on that's happily over now. I actually thought this was going to be my shortest chapter but in fact it turned out to be the longest one to date! That's one way to apologize for the lateness, ne?

I'm just so pleased that I got this posted before I leave for an 8-day cruise on August 5th. I especially want to extend a special thanks to **_Shadow Miko_** who gave me the kick I needed to sit down and type this chapter out. It's really thanks to her that I got this done. So, thank you:)

And again, thanks for all the reviews! You guys rock!


	8. Pondering Mercenary, Panicking Miko

**Chapter 8:**

_Pondering Mercenary, Panicking Miko_

"Speaking"

_'Thoughts'_

_--------------------------------------------_

**_Quick Recap:_**

Kagome and Bankotsu are still locked in the room together. Kagome realizes that the smartest, and only, thing to do was to ask Bankotsu to form an alliance with her against Naraku for the time being, reassuring the mercenary that 'things would go back to the way they were' after they got out of there. Bankotsu agrees, somewhat reluctantly. However, Naraku soon appears only to reveal his plan: he wants both Ban and Kag to fight each other to the death. When they protest, Kanna uses her mirror to show them both Kikyo and Jakotsu held captive by Naraku. If they refuse to fight each other, the captives would be killed instead.

_--------------------------------------------_

Kagome stared blankly at the woodened floor as she slowly put one foot in front of the other with no apparent effort to keep up. She trailed behind Kanna as the pale girl silently led her through the unknown hallways with her body moving in robotic fashion. It was only through sheer willpower that she was walking at all, her mind off in another place.

Honestly, it was surprising she was functioning as well as she was. Her mind wasn't used to all of the shocks it continued to receive in such a short period of time. The world hadn't been fair to it in the last couple of days, really.

Kagome tried to gather her scattered thoughts and pull her floating brain back to this plane, but it was to no avail. Try as she might, she couldn't seem to draw herself together again. She _knew_ that right now, as Kanna guided her, she should be formulating another plan, a _better_ plan than the one before.

Better than the one that had been "blown to hell."

But she couldn't.

She just couldn't.

Not right now, not when she could still hear _it._

That irritating cackle resounding in her ears.

--------

Bankotsu suppressed a groan of pain as he pushed his battered body in a struggle to remain standing. He could feel his knees threaten to buckle as he steadied himself against wall.

'_When all I want to do is to think about all the different ways to kill that bastard for imprisoning my friend…'_

Chest heaving from effort, he raised his gaze to meet Kagura's bored stare.

"Hurry up, will you? I have better things to do than be your babysitter," she complained to him.

'…_I'm left with this bitch instead.'_

"Just shut up. I told you to leave me alone. I don't need you to 'baby-sit' _me_," he spat back, his body trembling from strain.

Kagura drew herself up as she shot him a dirty look. "Believe me, I would have left you a while ago if I could. But Naraku ordered me to show you to your room and because I value my life, I'm stuck with you until I complete my task."

"Yeah, well, like I really care wha—"

The wind sorceress watched with little concern as the mercenary's knees gave out and his body hit the ground with a heavy **thud**.

When he did not stir, Kagura stepped closer to give him a little poke with her fan. He did not move. She nudged him again with the same results.

"Dammit, he's unconscious," she muttered to herself.

With a flick of her fan, wind gathered around his fallen body to slowly lift him off the ground.

"Stupid fool. You should have known that your body couldn't take much more stress, mentally or physically. Serves you right," Kagura told the unconscious man.

With an exasperated sigh, she walked out of the room the two prisoners had been locked in and out into the hallway. Waving her fan, the wind that was supporting Bankotsu's body crept to follow her.

"Creating more work for me, baka," she grumbled to herself. Starting down the hall, the levitating body following her all the way.

--------

"I leave you here," Kanna's monotone voice rang out quietly as she turned to leave, her job complete.

Kagome's bowed head shot up quickly to see that the pale girl was already starting to move away. "Wwait!" She was startled to hear how shaken her voice was. _'Come on girl, you gotta sound like you have it together!'_ Clearing her throat, she called out again, "Just wait a second, okay?"

Kanna, to Kagome's relief, obeyed her request.

"Yes?"

"Your name is Kanna, right?"

"Yes."

"Where have you brought me?"

"Your room."

"Does Naraku intend for me to stay in this room for the time being?"

"Yes."

"Am I free to roam around the castle while I'm here?"

"Yes."

"May I receive a bow and a quiver of arrows?"

"No."

"But what am I supposed to do without any protection? Just incase Bankotsu gets overexcited at the sheer thought of killing me and tries to do me in early?"

"**No**," She repeated again, letting the word hang in the air for before adding, "for the time being."

"'The time being?' Well, _when _can I receive them? Can you answer that?"

"No."

"Ugh! Can't you be a little bit more detailed with your answers?" Kagome demanded, tolerance wearing thin.

"No."

_'Have to love these one word answers. They're just so informative. Okay, let's try a different tactic. Let's try direct.'_

"Will Naraku attack me while I'm here?"

"No."

"Are Kikyo and Jakotsu truly being held prisoner by Naraku?"

Kanna stared at her with a frigid gaze. "Yes."

"Does…does Naraku really intend to do what he said? If I don't fight?"

Kagome could have sworn that she saw a sadistic look of pleasure flash through Kanna's eyes.

"Master Naraku-sama is always true to his promises…and his threats."

The miko grimly absorbed this, unsurprised.

"But why? **Why? **Why is he doing this?"

Kagome couldn't help but see the tiny smile Kanna wore as she slowly shook her head. Putting a finger to her lips, her blank eyes bore into Kagome's before she disappeared down the hallway.

--------

'_I feel like crap.' _

Bankotsu groaned as he woke, feeling as if he had been run over by a pack of wild demons.

'_Where am I now? The last thing I remember is that wench Kagura…'_ Opening weary blue eyes, he had to blink a few times to allow his sight to adjust. Then the mercenary slowly turned his head, taking in his new surroundings and attempting to get a grip on the situation at hand.

The room he was in now was plain, to say the least. It had the basic bed that sat in the middle of the small room, headboard against the wall. A few wooden shelves scattered on the bare walls. On the wall to the right of the bed was a solitary window.

The door, though closed, had no lock.

'_So this is my room, eh? Talk about not going out of your way to impress, Naraku.'_

Wincing, he struggled to prop himself up against the headboard of the bed. His right arm ached with a powerful fire and the gorge on his side from Inuyasha throbbed endlessly. _'The pain never seems to end; it just keeps getting worse and worse. I wish Suikotsu were here.'_

Anger mixed with sadness overcame him as the present once again hit him with sharp sense of reality. _'But Suikotsu's not here. And either is Kyokotsu, Mukotsu. Ginkotsu or Renkotsu. They're all gone. And I'm all by myself.'_

Bankotsu swallowed hard.

_'Naraku mercilessly murdered Suikotsu and Renkotsu after using them, after using all of us. We were all puppets in his warped show, players in his twisted game. Fucking puppets that are expected to dance when he pulls the string.'_

'_The part that bothers me the most was that I **knew it**. I knew that he was using us but I chose to ignore it. I wanted to believe that if we were able to kill Inuyasha and the others, he would allow us to continue to live longer by giving us other missions to do.'_

He smiled a bitter smile.

'_Careless again. Stupid again. That's what it all comes down to **again**, doesn't it? It's just like before. Just like it. I believed what I wanted to believe and ignored the rest. And look what became of it.'_

'_And now he has Jakotsu. The last one, the only one I haven't failed twice.' _

Bankotsu's pain racked eyes took on a steely glint.

_'Jakotsu, I won't fail you again.'_

"I won't, I **_refuse_** to," he swore out loud.

_'Let me do right by you one more time. Let me make up for the mistakes of the past…and of the present. If you're the only one I can save from Naraku's grasp, then so be it. If only I can help one of you…'_

A humorless chuckle escaped him, breaking the solemn silence of the room as he realized something.

"Ironic, isn't it? You were my first friend and now you're my last."

His laughter died.

"My first friend, my last friend. And soon I'll be alone," he said bitterly.

'_Alone if I don't do what Naraku says. Just like a perfect little slave, obeying his commands to a T. Hell, he could tell me to lick his feet and I'd have to do it. But no, he wants me to fight with that girl, to kill her. Not that I would mind killing her, but,' _he furrowed his brow, _'but something just doesn't add up here.'_

_'Why, out of everything he could have forced that girl and I to do, why make us fight each other? With the blackmail he has, he could have made us do anything. And yet, he picks what he did.'_

Bankotsu shook his head in frustration at the puzzle before him.

'_And what makes matters even more complicated was that event in the woods. If I were as worthless to him as he claimed me to be, why not just kill me then? He **was** going to, he had started what had promised to be a slow, tortuous death for me,' _he grimaced, glancing down at his mangled hand,_ 'but then he stopped. What suddenly made him stop? What changed his mind? And that girl. He had wanted her dead as well, but once again he doesn't kill her when he has the chance to. Instead, he brings us here, goes through the trouble of ensuring us to fight and then gives us rooms to stay in for the time being.'_

"It feels like I'm missing some major bits of information, because none of this mess makes sense," he complained to the empty room.

'_He had the chance to simply kill us and be done with it, but instead he does something so much more complicated. Instead, he lays this whole elaborate plan into place just to get the desired result of one of us killing the other. All this, when he could have just killed us himself hours ago and save himself the trouble.' _

"I think I'm getting a headache just thinking about this whole stupid thing," Bankotsu lamented.

'_What difference could waiting to kill us make? Where's the distinction? Whether he killed us both before or we kill each other, the result's the same. Dead. Dead. Dead. So what does Naraku think will happen differently? **What will happen during the time we're stuck here, waiting for Naraku to give the order to tear each other apart that wouldn't have happened if he had just killed us before?** What am I missing here?'_

The mercenary groaned, from both the burning pain of his wounds and from irritation. "This is all just too confusing for me, dammit! I'm starting to see crap that's not even there. Who am I kidding? Naraku's just doing this to get his kicks in by torturing us."

_'And because Naraku gets high off life by glorifying himself in the pain of others, that's why I'm stuck in the position I am now. I despise the fact of having to submit to Naraku after all he's done to the Shichinintai, but I have no other choice. I'll play obedient slave for now, Jakotsu, if only to keep you alive.'_

From his position on the bed, Bankotsu turned his head without disturbing his aching body to face the window. Looking at the glimmering sunlight, he remained quiet and still for a few moments before breaking the silence once again.

"I swear it to you, my brother. I swear it. I promise you that I'll fight with everything I have in order to save you."

_'I don't care who I must face, whether it be that silly girl or a hundred demons. The result will be the same, with I the victor. And when it's all over…'_

The leader of the Shichinintai smiled maliciously.

'_Naraku will regret the day he ever took pleasure from my pain.'_

--------

'_Small, but at least it's clean,' _Kagome thought as she inspected her room from where she stood.

She wandered over to one of the shelves, running a finger across it. _'No dust in this room, I wonder who Naraku threatened to clean it?' _

Walking over to the only window the room had, she noted the sun high over head. _'I wonder how long I've been here…does Inuyasha even realize that something has happened to me yet?'_

She turned away from the window to gaze around the room once more.

_'And to think that I thought Naraku was going to stick me in the dungeons! Ha! This room is much nicer than I thought Naraku capable of bestowing on one of his 'guests.' I wonder why?'_

She turned somber at the thought.

'_His 'guest.' This room. All ploys in his scheme. Honestly, the real truth of it is… _

Kagome pressed her back against the wall as the reality of her situation hit her. _'…that by giving me this room, Naraku really intends to make Bankotsu and I fight.'_

The girl shivered, as if suddenly cold. _'I have to fight Bankotsu. Naraku is making me fight **Bankotsu**. Bankotsu, the mercenary. Bankotsu, the leader of the Shichinintai. Bankotsu, murderer of 1000.'_

'_And I'll have to fight him all by myself…with no one to help…'_

She trembled. _'Will I become another name on his list of victims?' _

'_Just another faceless killing for him?'_

'_Another dead body to add to the growing heap?' _

She wrapped her arms around herself as she slowly slid down the wall to land on the floor.

_'Even Inuyasha had trouble fighting him! Even without Banryuu, he's still deadly! All he has to do is get in one well placed hit and…'_

Kagome could feel the panic welling up inside of her and spreading throughout her numbed body as she envisioned her fatal end.

_'It's a suicide match, that's what it is! I have no chance, no possibility, no hope at defeating him! If I fight him, if I do what Naraku says, I'm sure of what the outcome will be!'_

Her eyes, open and wide, stared out blankly.

_'I'll…'_

_'I'll be…'_

_'I'll be the one **dead!**'_

_…_

_…_

_'I…I don't want to die!'_

'**_So what if you don't fight him? What if you refuse to? Naraku cannot force you to fight,' _**the darker thoughts slithered into the girl's troubled mind

'_Don't fight?' _The idea had never occurred before.

'_**Don't fight, therefore preserving your own life. You wouldn't have to worry about taking on Bankotsu. No more panic, no more anxiety. It's your best bet of survival until Inuyasha comes for you.'**_

'_Yes, that does make the most sense. But…'_

'_**But what?'**_

_'Inuyasha…'_

'_**Inuyasha?'**_

_'…and Kikyo.'_

'_**Kikyo!'**_

_'If I don't fight Bankotsu, if I don't do what Naraku says, he'll kill Kikyo.'_

'**_So what? You don't even _**like **_Kikyo all that much anyway. By saving her you're putting yourself on the chopping block instead. Is that what you want?'_**

_'No, but…'_

'**_Kikyo was always getting in the way. Inuyasha will never be able to take notice of you with Kikyo around. She should be sent back to the grave where she belongs,'_** her mind thought spitefully.

'_**Send her back to the grave and be with Inuyasha…just the way you know you want it. Inuyasha would be all yours if Kikyo were finally gone! Inuyasha will eventually come to rescue you and find Kikyo good and dead. And who better to be there and comfort him in his time of grief than you? Just refuse to fight and reap the benefits!' **_

"…the benefits of **sacrificing**…Kikyo?" she whispered, horrified.

Kagome froze, shocked at the implications of her own thoughts. '_Oh my god, was I really considering that just now? Was I really considering refusing to fight in order to save my own skin and to sacrifice Kikyo in the process?'_

Disgust with herself replaced her feelings of panic. _'Though I may not like my chances in a fight against Bankotsu, I cannot allow Naraku to kill Kikyo. I couldn't live with myself with that on my conscious, I couldn't! I don't want to be the kind of person who goes through life damning others in order to help themselves!'_

'_And Inuyasha…I would never be able to face him if I took the coward's way out.' _

'_Besides,'_ she thought grimly, _'Inuyasha would** never be able to forgive me if I were the reason Kikyo died. **He would despise me to the ends of the earth. I _never_ want Inuyasha to hate me. I care about him too much that if he ever did…if he ever hated me…I…I…'_

She clenched her fists in anguish.

'…_even if I wish he would forget about Kikyo and turn to me…'_

Kagome shook her head. _'No! I know that Inuyasha loves Kikyo and she does, or used to, love him just as much. When she died, her death tore him apart. It's something that will always haunt him, as much as he tries to hide it. If Naraku kills her and he's unable to prevent it again, I…I don't know if he'll be able to recover from it this time.'_

'_Inuyasha is always putting himself in danger for me, and always rushing headlong into battle to rescue me despite all the injuries he receives in the process. Sure, we fight and say stuff we don't mean,' _she winced, recalling the fight from earlier which inevitably led to her current situation, _'but…when it really comes down to it, he's my best friend.'_

'_My best friend who always tries to keep me safe and not allow anything or anyone to hurt me without showing any concern for himself.'_

Brown eyes took on a steely glint.

_'And now he's the one at the risk of getting hurt.'_

She smiled.

'_And now it's my turn to be **his** protector.' _

She took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, and then exhaled.

'_And if that means killing Bankotsu to keep Kikyo alive for Inuyasha, then I'll do it.'_

"I'll do it!" she declared to the empty room.

Her eyes recovered their lost spirit as she rose from her position on the floor. Turning to face the window once again, she stared out into the sunlight. Kagome let its warmth caress her face as determination filled her.

"Inuyasha, can you hear me from wherever you are? I'll save Kikyo for you! I'll do it! I promise!" she yelled out into the sunshine.

"I'm just gonna have to train extra hard for this fight…"

Her voice dropped in pitch to a murmur, fingers clenching the edge of the window.

"…in order to come out of it alive."

--------

A warm, yet thin, wind flowed breezily through the soft grass. Birds twittered above while flowers opened their petals to drink in the sun. The sky, light blue in color, was freckled with pale puffy clouds.

Glorious sunlight illuminated a solitary figure moving swiftly across the land, heading in the direction of the forest.

But the figure abruptly stopped, if struck. Amber eyes darted all around before finally settling on the very tops of the trees that had begun to come into view. Straining ears listened intently for the sound that had made in halt in the first place, a voice that he had not expected to 'hear.'

From anxious lips fell a single word.

"Kagome?"

---

**_Chapter started_**: 8/21/06 

_**Chapter completed**: _8/31/06 _at 9:52 pm_

So there you go, their reasons for fighting. I know a couple of people were like "Kikyo for Kagome? wtf?" so I hoped I was able to explain the logic behind that in this chapter.

I'm also pleased with myself that I was able to get this chapter up before high school starts up again, which for me is on this Tuesday. I'm a senior, which enough for hard for me to believe. Anyway, until next chapter! (There should be some KagBan interaction in it, but don't hold me to it)

Thank you all for always taking the time to review! And sorry, I didn't add the fluff prologue like I always do. I wasn't in a fluff mood and didn't want to force something out just to have it there.


	9. The Castle's Barrier

**C**reated: _August 18, 2009_ ( 1:18pm)  
**C**ompleted _August 24, 2009_ ( 1:16pm)  
**P**airing(s): Bankotsu/Kagome  
**S**tatus: **Ongoing, Incomplete  
****S**tory **R**ecap: While Inuyasha duels Bankotsu, Kagome watches as Renkotsu is brutally killed by what turns out to be Naraku. Inuyasha wounds Bankotsu as Kagome rejoins the group, but is unable to finish him off as he senses Kikyo and goes after her. Kagome and Inuyasha fight, which leads to Kagome taking off and discovering Naraku torturing Bankotsu in the woods. Still disturbed by Renkotsu's horrible death and angered by Inuyasha's comments, she tries to help Bankotsu. Naraku, on the verge of killing Bankotsu, stops and takes them both to his castle. Bankotsu and Kagome are locked in a room for hours as Kagome suggests they temporary align together against Naraku. However, Naraku soon reveals his plan to have them fight one another for unknown reasons. As they threaten to refuse, Naraku tells them that he has both Kikyo and Jakotsu in his hands and will kill them if they don't do as he says. Kagome and Bankotsu are led to separate rooms and they both commit themselves to doing whatever it takes to win. Inuyasha hears Kagome's 'voice' calling out to him as she promises herself that she'll save Kikyo for Inuyasha's sake.

**Chapter 9:**

_The Castle's Barrier_

Bankotsu was abruptly torn from the realms of sleep as pain flared white-hot from the gash Inuyasha had given him two days prior. Careful not to jostle the arm that was also injured, he peeled back his layers of clothing and armor to check his wounds and discovered the bandage he had clumsily wrapped around his torso spotted with dots of blood.

"Shit," he cursed aloud, his eyes scanning the room he had been given for some sort of new bandage he could use in the meanwhile. Having no other alternative, Bankotsu tore some of the linen sheets to use in a pinch.

"_I'm going to have to find some way to take care of this… and soon." _The dark-haired man gritted his teeth as he struggled to retie the bandage with his remaining good hand. "_What kind of use will I be to Jakotsu if I can barely lift my sword to face that girl…not to mention Naraku himself?" _

Though Bankotsu had been given a second chance at life, his life was linked directly to the shards implanted in his body. Injuries and infection still affected him the way they would a normal mortal man, though he would not die from them. Only the removal of the shard lodged in his neck would once again reduce the Shichinintai leader to bones.

To be honest with himself, Bankotsu wasn't even sure what would happen if he suffered an injury that left him unable to move. Would his body continue to survive while his soul once again departed? Or did he now inhabit a body that could be ripped apart while he lived on within whatever pieces were left?

Bankotsu shuddered. '_What would happen if I were severed in two? Or cut into a million little pieces? Would I still be tied to this body, damned to life because of the shikon?'_

What a horrible existence that would be.

---------------------

Kagome, covered with dirty grime and blood, made quick work to explore the closet across from the bed, searching for a spare change of clothes. She felt as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders, the happiness of Inuyasha and the life of the woman he loved—she winced—riding on the outcome of a battle between a modern-day seventeen year old girl and a undead man who had taken the lives of hundreds.

No pressure, right?

'_It's amazing how a change of clothes can make somewhere feel better. Once I look better, I'll feel better and I'll be able to think more thoroughly about what the hell I'm going to do in order to win…'_

She glanced down at her school uniform, wrinkling her nose.

'_As much as I hate to wear anything that Naraku provided, I can't go around looking like this. Do you think they've even __**heard **__of washing machines in this era? No way…and what I would give for one right now!'_

Sliding the door open, Kagome discovered several sets of feudal-style kimonos, all neatly folded for her to choose from. Delighted by the bright patterns and intricate designs, she debated for nearly ten minutes on which to choose before settling on one that was light pink in color and had sprays of tiny white and gold flowers throughout.

'_I really need a bath though if I'm going to be wearing something like this. It would be a shame to spoil something so beautiful, even though it's owned by someone like Naraku.' _Gathering the kimono up in her arms and some spare ribbon to tie her hair back, she opened the door and went out into the monotone-colored hallway to search for somewhere to bathe.

---------------------

It had been a struggle with only one working arm to properly address his wounds; he still was only about to do the job halfway. Bankotsu's skills and strength had been his life's blood, a constant which he relied on for years to survive and make his name. After so many years of earning the title of the strongest human, to be so weakened now was an embarrassment.

"_It's a real mess you've gotten yourself into this time, Bankotsu," _the mercenary bitterly thought to himself. "_A real good mess." _

Sliding his clothes back into place over the tender bandages, Bankotsu stood from the bed, sweat breaking out across his forehead as he headed for the door. As he reached for the door, he saw in a moment that the door was now moving towards him on its own, devoid of his assistance. Before Bankotsu had the time realize a door was swinging towards him, startling pain shrieked up his hand and exploded like stars through his body.

"Fu—"

----------------------

"—ck my life."

Kagome glanced with surprise into the room, not expecting the door to hit something solid or the groan of pain that then followed. Her chocolate eyes peeped from the hallway to the man that hunched on the other side, gripping his arm as he gasped for breath.

"Bankotsu?"

"Who-_wheeze-_the hell-_wheeze-_else would it be? You stupid woman!"

Her eyes widened and her lips formed a little 'o.' "I hit your hand, didn't I? The one which Naraku snapped the fingers on?"

"Do…I…**even**-_wheeze-_have to…**answer** that?"

Sliding through the doorway, Kagome made her way over to Bankotsu. As she reached out to touch his shoulder, he abruptly pulled away, gasping from the pain his quick moment brought.

"I'm, that is, I'm…"

"What are you? **Sorry?" **he spat. "Don't bother and don't touch me."

Kagome slowly retracted the hand that still hung suspended like a little broken bridge in midair. "I am sorry though. I didn't even know that this was the room you were given. Do you want me to look at your hand for you? It must be tough to bandage by yourself."

Bankotsu glared at her, beads of sweat glistening in his hair. "Just get out. I don't need _your _help. I'm fine on my own."

"I just thought…"

"Leave. In case you've forgotten, I'm going to be the one that **kills**you whenever Naraku gives us the go-ahead with his sick little plan. Maybe I won't even _wait_ until then if you keep bugging me! Are you really that stupid to try and help someone who will be your murderer?"

"Fine. Just fine," the dark haired girl narrowed her eyes upon the mercenary. "You can call me stupid all you want, but I'm not going to let you kill me."

Emotionless blue eyes studied Kagome as Bankotsu laughed as if she had made a little joke. "What then? You kill me?"

"Yes," she replied steadily as Bankotsu laughed even harder.

The mercenary straightened, spider web-lines of pain grooving his forehead showing how much the effort taxed him. "You're funny, girl. At least you have that going for you." He then noticed the kimono she held in her hands. "What are you doing anyway?"

Kagome shifted her weight from one foot to another, as if eager to leave the room and just end the entire conversation. "I'm going to find a bath."

Bankotsu laughed. "Okay. That's not going to help you much in terms of defeating me. But it's still pretty funny. But now seriously, get out."

"Hmph. I was just leaving anyway," she said as walked out. "At least _I'm _not the one bleeding through my clothing. If you die beforehand, it just makes it easier on me!"

Bankotsu glanced down to see the white cloth that covered his torso blooming with little spots of blood.

'_Dammit.' _

Today really wasn't shaping up to be a very good day.

----------------------

After leaving Bankotsu's room, Kagome soon found herself in the same state she was in before—lost. She spent approximately another hour (she guessed) stumbling around the castle and checking (mostly) empty rooms. Just as the miko was about to give up, Kagura's irritated voice struck out from the gloominess of the hallway.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

Jerking her head around, Kagome spotted the wind sorceress behind her. "I was just trying to find if this place has a bath or something. That's all."

Kagura's folded fan cut through the air, rustling the dust that littered the hallway as she pointed. "It's down that way, to the left."

----------------------

"Inuyasha, it's been a good four days since Kagome's gone missing! Where is she where is she where is she?" Shippo whined pitifully as he tugged on the hanyou's red pant leg. The white haired boy clenched his fist. "I don't know. But I'm going to find her and make the life of whoever took her a living hell!"

It had been four days since Kagome had turned up missing from their group, sparking worry and unease within them all. Sango and Miroku had split up from the other two, heading West in hopes to hear word of their friend while Inuyasha and Shippo went East. The girl had vanished without a word, disappearing after her fight with Inuyasha over Kikyou—a fact that made the inu hanyou uncomfortably guilty.

"Do you think she went home? You know, back to her time?" Shippo asked, holding tighter onto the hakama as if to remind Inuyasha that he couldn't avoid his questions.

"No, Shippo, I told you. I already went down the well the second day after Kagome went missing. Her family hadn't seen her. There's no way she would disappear for days without being in trouble. With Kagome, that almost always signals a kidnapping."

"Inuyasha, that's not funny!"

Inuyasha glanced down at his companion. "I know it's not Shippo, I wasn't trying to be funny. It's the truth, or at least, it usually is."

"Didn't you hear her voice? A couple of days ago, while you were running in the field?"

"Yeah."

"But how could you have heard her if she wasn't there?"

Inuyasha lightly thunked Shippo's head with his fist. "I dunno, Squirt. And it's not like I _heard _her with my ears. I just…I don't know….heard her calling out to me in my head? And then she was just _gone," _he said as he offered his shoulder to the child. "Now climb on, I'm going to run and you can't possibly keep up with those stubby legs of yours."

The fox demon climbed on, his tail twitching with annoyance over Inuyasha's latest insult. "It's _your _fault Kagome even got kidnapped or whatever."

Remorse flittered across his face. "Shut up, why don't you? Don't tell me things I already know."

'_I'll find you, Kagome. I promise. Just let me find you so I have the chance to let you know that I'm sorry.'  
_

----------------------

"An onsen?! Are you kidding me?!" Kagome groaned as she finally came across her hard-earned bath. "There's not friggin way I'm going to be able to relax in an outdoor bath that's apart of Naraku's castle!"

Kagome had followed Kagura's instructions and found herself opening a door that surprisingly led to the outside. After her experiences of the last couple of days, the sound of birds and the feel of the wind against her skin felt bizarre and out of place. She blinked long and hard, as if she were a creature who had been denied sunshine for so long that she had forgotten how to see with it.

The area was glorious, filled with flowers and trees and a little koi pond. _'Surprising that someone of Naraku's type would be able to culture such beauty. I didn't think he'd bother.' _

Following the speckled-stone path, her toes delighted in the little bumps and the sound of crunching the pebbles made beneath her feet. Herbs dotted alongside the path, soft leaves and stems waving in the breeze.

Stooping, Kagome brushed her fingers along the underside of one of the herbs. Kaede had taught her some herb-lore over the years she'd been traveling through time. The old priestess even went as far as to teach her how to use her miko powers to encourage healing and strength. The sight of the herbs was a welcomed reminder of the people who loved her and were waiting for her triumph and return.

Resigned to the idea of bathing in an open bath with her arch-enemies about, Kagome carefully removed her soiled and ripped uniform and slid into the warm onsen water with only a towel wrapped around her body.

Sighing contently, she rested her head against the stones that circled the bath.

'_This is definitely the best thing to happen to me all day.' _

The warm water soothed her, washing away the dirt and sending waves of drowsiness pulsing softly through her skin. With a lazy gaze, she followed the flight of several birds as they sliced through the air on expert wings as she scrubbed the stress and grime from her body. Humming quietly to herself, she took the time to make sure that no residue of the past days remained on her.

She watched as the birds flew a good distance off and came to perch on a tree. Cheeping, one flew further past the other. Kagome smiled and turned to the task of drying herself off when the smell of cooking meat and the cry of an animal in distress pulled her from her task.

The adventurous little bird, the one who flew farther than his mate, now was a livewire.

Kagome's smile froze on her face as she watched in absolute disbelief as the innocent creature fried alive. It was suspended in midair, pink light crackling around it as the bird cooked. Helpless, Kagome watched as the bird plummeted from the air, a marionette with its strings clipped, to land as a charred, smoking husk on the ground.

Darting from the onsen, Kagome proceeded cautiously to where the bird lay. Taking a stick that lay on the ground, she held it out in front of her in order to avoid the same fate that befell the bird.

When she reached the corpse, Kagome felt as if her knees could barely support her. Taking the stick, she poked it out tentatively a few feet away from the slain animal. Small shocks of electricity jolted down the stick and into her arm as she hastily released the stick.

Pink light flared up again from where the stick made contact with an invisible barrier as the wood turned to ash, falling to the ground and covering the bird like funeral dirt.

'_A barrier to keep us in and to keep others out…' _Kagome thought, shaking slightly, '_I pray that my friends don't make the same mistake this bird did. Birds and birdcages…that is what Naraku has forced upon Bankotsu and I in. One giant cage where he pulls all the strings in whatever sick game he's playing…and this barrier is just another way to ensure we play by the rules.' _

Suddenly the day didn't seem nearly as beautiful anymore.

The girl turned to head back to the castle, misery tingling through her as the surviving bird's sorrowful song echoed from above. _'The least I can do is bury the poor creature. I got to find a box or something to place the body in.'_

As Kagome entered the castle, the sunshine that had streamed behind her was abruptly cut off as the door closed onto empty gloom. Her wet hair, tied up with a ribbon, still dripped tiny ringlets of water down her back and causing shivers to run up and down her spine. Walking towards her room, she paused suddenly in front of one of the doors.

'_What's on my foot?' _She lifted her barefoot off the ground, squinting in the dusky light in effort to make out the warm liquid that now coated the bottom of her sole. Whatever it was oozed out from beneath the doorway she stood in front of.

'_It's not clear fluid, so it has to be…colored? It can't be water, so what…?' _Dabbing her finger into the dark puddle, she brought the foreign substance up to her nose. _'This is…' _her eyes widened as her brain absorbed what her nose was telling her.

'_Blood?!'_

Kagome opened the door from which the blood seemed to be coming from, but found she could only get it open halfway. Peering in, she took in the sight of a man lying on the floor near the door, facedown in a pool of his own blood. His dark braid lay tangled in it, soaking up the red liquid like a sponge.

'_Bankotsu??'_

Kagome slid through the opening of the doorway and crouched down besides her enemy, disregarding the blood that now stained the hem of her kimono. Taking care, she slowly turned him on his side without jostling his injured arm.

The white material blossomed with his blood, an ill-tied bandage wrapped around his torso as the liquid oozed out. Bankotsu moaned; sweat beading down his pasty face as he floated in between the realms of delirium.

"Holy shit…"

'_Now what do I do?!' _

----------------------

**_A/N: _I know it's been years…I'm sorry about the wait. Are there still any BanKag fans out there?**

**Also, the news of _Inuyasha _manga chapters 360 – end being animated is very exciting. Finally, the anime series will be complete!**


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